HANGZHOU – Justin Brownlee evened things up with rival Rondae Hollis-Jefferson.
Brownlee got his payback against Hollis-Jefferson Friday night when he guided Gilas Pilipinas to the gold medal of the 19th Asian Games following a 70-60 win over Jordan.
See Heroes welcome awaits Gilas Pilipinas golden boys
The victory came six months after Hollis-Jefferson denied Brownlee and the Barangay Ginebra Kings a fourth straight PBA Governors Cup title as TNT bagged the championships of the season-ending tournament.
“He got me on the last one in the finals of the PBA,” Brownlee acknowledged shortly after the Asiad awarding ceremony.
Hollis-Jefferson likewise beat out Brownlee for the Best Import trophy.
But Brownlee, 35, said the final was not about his personal rivalry with Hollis-Jefferson, since national honor and pride are what’s at stake.
“It’s definitely wasn’t about me or him, more so, it’s just about Jordan and the Philippines,” said the three-time PBA Best Import.
After averaging 34.5 points in two thrilling wins over Iran and China, Brownlee was held to just 20 points in 33 percent shooting (6-of-18) as Hollis-Jefferson switched on him defensively from time to time. He did finish with 10 rebounds and five assists.
Hollis-Jefferson on the other hand, shot 8-of-29 from the field for 28 percent shooting as Chris Newsome would often be on his face, though he finished with a game-high 24 points, 12 rebounds, and five assists.
Despite getting even against the former NBA player, Brownlee still holds Hollis-Jefferson in high regard.
“I got to give him a lot of credit. He’s a special talent. He played very well with his team, got his teammates involved,” said the Gilas naturalized player.
“He gave us problems in this game, the last game, whenever we play on, he’s very tough. So just give him a lot of credit, he definitely give his team a chance. He’s just very tough to guard.”
The silver won by Hollis-Jefferson and Jordan, incidentally was the country’s first ever medal in basketball.
Meanwhile, congressman and former PBA chairman Mikee Romero felt proud at the way Brownlee performed to help Gilas recaptured the gold in the Asiad.
In a Facebook page post, Romero said Brownlee's showing gave 'tremendous help in giving back to our country the historic Asian Games gold medal, 61 years in the making.'
Romero was the main author in Congress of the bill that naturalized the 35-year-old Brownlee.
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