FIBA-Asia: Korea clinches bronze with come-from-behind win over Gilas

It was the memory of Busan all over again. Smart Gilas-Pilipinas collapsed in the endgame, allowing Korea to pull off a stunning come-from-behind 70-68 win Sunday night in the battle for the bronze of the 26th FIBA-Asia Championship For Men which came to a close at the Wuhan gymnasium in China. Sungmin Cho proved to be the biggest thorn on the Nationals’ side as he poured off 20 points including 4-of-7 from beyond the arc. He scored 10 of his team’s final 13 points to shatter the remaining Olympic hopes of the country. The champion of the meet earns an outright berth to the 2012 London Games, while the runner up and third placer vie for four wild card spots at stake in the FIBA-World Olympic qualifying tournament to be held July 2-8 next year just weeks before the Summer Games. “It’s a difficult time for me, it’s difficult time for the Philippine national team. Everybody was shocked, the players were crying, it’s a tough time for them," said Rajko Toroman, the Smart Gilas Serbian coach, trying himself to hold back tears during the post-game press conference. Korea also dealt the Philippines a heartbreaking loss in the semifinals of the 2002 Asian Games in Busan, South Korea behind the dagger of a three-pointer nailed by Korean gunner Lee Sang Min at the buzzer. This one is just as painful. The Nationals were actually less than two minutes away from clinching the bronze, clinging on to a 65-61 lead following a strong drive to the basket by Marcus Douthit, whose monster game of 27 points and 22 rebounds showed the way for the team. And then disaster struck. Cho hit a three-pointer and naturalized player Taejong Moon, 0-for-5 from beyond the arc at that point, drained another one, as Korea finally took a 67-65 lead in the final 47 seconds after trailing by as many as 11 starting the final period. The Nationals had several opportunities to regain back the lead, but folded up in the most critical time, missing five of their eight attempts from the foul line in the last 38 seconds. The last of those botched free throws came with nine seconds to go on a split by Marcio Lassiter that made it 68-69. Cho made just one of two free throws at the other end for the final margin, as JV Casio’s desperate attempt from three-point range came up short at the buzzer, setting off a wild celebration among Korean players and their coach Hur Jae at midcourt. Jimmy Alapag was 6-of-12 from the field and 5-of-7 from three-point range for 17 points, while Kelly Williams added nine and 11 rebounds, but missed two foul shots with 26 seconds left in the game The fourth place finish was the best the Philippines ever had in the tournament the last 24 years, duplicating the same feat achieved by the 1987 team of coach Joe Lipa and star player Alvin Patrimonio in Bangkok, Thailand. The Koreans, who played without injured starter Donggeun Yang and the imposing Seung Jin Ha, had more points off turnovers, 13-5, points off the paint, 34-28, and second chance points, 15-8. But their erratic shooting in the first three quarters paved the way for the Nationals to dominate the game three-fourths of the way, leading by as many as 24-11 and 41-29, before collapsing in the homestretch when the Koreans finally found their rhythm going. “We deserve to win, we’re the better team," Toroman said. - OMG, GMA News The scores: Korea (68) – Cho 20, Kim 14, Oh 9, Kang 8, Moon 8, Kim 7, Lee 2, Yang 1, Kim Y.H. 1, Park 0. Smart Gilas (68) – Douthit 27, Alapag 17, Williams 9, Lutz 5, De Ocampo 3, Baracael 2, Casio 2, Lassiter 1, Taulava 0. Quarterscores: 7-14; 17-24; 36-47; 70-68.