GILAS Pilipinas coach Jong Uichico is hoping that Matt Nieto's injury isn't that serious and it's only a plain, old sprain.
The veteran mentor has yet to provide a concrete update on the situation of the 6-foot-1 guard after stepping on the foot of Thailand's Chanatip Jakrawan at the 7:06 mark of the third period.
"He just sprained his ankle," Uichico said on Monday after the Philippines' 93-69 victory over Thailand in the 2021 Fiba Asia Cup qualifiers in Manama.
With Gilas already leading big, 57-39, at that point, there was no urgency for the coaching staff to force the issue on Nieto as they took the side of precaution and ruled him out for the remainder of the game.
"We don't know how bad it is but he could not return, so we had to check if it was swollen or not," he said.
Nieto's injury dampened Gilas' victory as before his injury, he was playing magnificently, tallying 12 points and two assists in his 14 minutes of action as a starter.
Lucky for the Philippines, the rest of the cadets picked up the cudgels and secured the country's third win in as many games to move on top of Group A at 3-0 heading into the February 2021 window.
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