JAKARTA — Team Pilipinas enjoyed a rare break in the 2018 Asian Games on Wednesday, spending time with a group of Pinoy migrants which treated Yeng Guiao and his players to a veritable feast of Filipino food.
The timing is perfect, considering the team was coming off a heartbreaking 82-80 loss at the hands of old rival China.
Guiao, however, was in no mood to wallow in sorrow over the 'lost opportunity' against China, preferring to look ahead to an anticipated match-up with nemesis Korea at the start of the knockout quarterfinals in men's basketball.
The multi-titled coach knows exactly what to expect from Korea, which has dealt the Philippines its share of heartbreaks in both the Fiba Asia and Asiad wars.
Korea is a different animal. That Guiao can't emphasize enough.
“Korea has a different system. Hindi sila nagri-rely sa malalaki nila,” Guiao said, comparing the Koreans with the Chinese. “They rely on ball movement. We have to prepare for their quickness.”
The Korean team will be reinforced by former PBA import Ricardo Ratliffe. But the Gilas coach sees it as an advantage, saying the Korean naturalized player is the least of their concerns, scouting-wise.
“Our familiarity with Ratliffe will save us some time on the scouting report, but Korea is more than Ratliffe," said Guiao, warning that the Koreans are all about team play.
"Korea is more of a team game. They move the ball around. If you lose your focus, if you lose your patience, that’s the time you break down on defense. I guess those are the things that we have to plan against Korea,” Guiao said.
The multi-titled PBA coach, however, draws confidence from the Philippine team's gutsy showing against China in a game where they came one basket and defensive stop away from a huge upset.
“If we play with the same effort just like what we’ve shown against China, tingin ko kaya natin ang Korea,” Guiao said.
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