MANILA, Philippines — Tim Cone admitted that Gilas Pilipinas’ gut-wrenching 66-57 win against a fighting Iraq side gave the needed shot in the arm so to speak for the team as it stays in contention in the FIBA Asia Cup 2025 on Saturday in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
The Filipinos’ confidence was obviously affected following back-to-back defeats to Taiwan and New Zealand the past few days.
But with Dwight Ramos providing the scoring with Justin Brownlee struggling to make his shots, the Philippines finally overcame a tentative first half, and went on to establish a big lead during the third quarter en route to chalking up its first win at the close of the group phase.
The 67-year-old Cone also paid tribute to the big Filipino fans working in Jeddah, who had come in droves to cheer them on since their opening game against the Taiwanese.
“I think that our crowd really elevates our game then they (Gilas players) start playing well. And when Dwight hits the shot, they go crazy. That really lifts the spirit that we have,” Cone said.
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However, the American mentor also said, having a big crowd that cheers for them comes the heavy responsibility of trying to “satisfy” them with a win, which basically adds further to the pressure.
“It’s two-pronged. We also feel the pressure because we want to satisfy our crowd so much, they are evident there,” he explained.
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“Sometimes we go tight and not free and easy, but we have to learn to go over that as a group. And when we start getting things going, it really elevates the game of everybody,” shared Cone.
The all-time PBA winning coach said if there’s anything unique about playing overseas, every Philippine team can expect Filipino fans working or living overseas to come in droves and cheer for them.
“It’s an amazing thing. We experienced that back home, and basically everywhere we go in the world, it’s such a unique thing to our team and to our country and to our culture,” he said.
