InterAKTV file photo/Justin Gener
SMART-Gilas Pilipinas coach Chot Reyes said he’s to blame for the national team’s 77-60 defeat to Iran in the semifinals of the FIBA Asia cup Friday in Tokyo, Japan.
“23 turnovers. Weren’t ready to play. I take full responsibility,” wrote Reyes on his Twitter account after the game.
A day after committing 21 turnovers against Chinese Taipei, the Philippines was once again plagued by errors, which allowed Iran to turn a tight 50-47 contest in the third quarter into a blowout in the fourth.
The loss relegated SMART-Gilas to the battle for third. Several players chimed in on Twitter to apologize to Filipino basketball fans and promise a better effort for the bronze medal match.
“Apologies for letting the country down tonight,” wrote Gabe Norwood on his feed. “Only option now is to bounce back tomorrow and finish on somewhat of a high note.”
“We will bounce back from today. We will place third. There’s nothing else to say,” added Jared Dillinger.
But while he accepted the responsibility for for the team’s loss, Reyes clarified that there was something he wasn’t taking the blame for.
“I didn’t deserve the (technical foul) for talking to (Gabe Norwood) two minutes into the game from the LEBANESE ref,” said Reyes. The coach was among those who had criticized FIBA Asia for awarding the hosting rights to next year’s championship to Lebanon despite what he called a better presentation from the Philippines. FIBA Asia secretary-general Hagop Khajirian is, incidentally, Lebanese.
SMART-Gilas will take on the loser of the other semifinal pairing between Japan and Qatar.
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