Photo from Fiba.com
Andray Blatche knows how important outside shooting is for Gilas Pilipinas if it wants to come out of the first leg of the 2019 Fiba World Cup Asian qualifiers with a pair of wins.
“We had a good job on defense, but we missed a lot of open shots and we got to look on that if we want to get better,” Blatche said on Sunday after wrapping up the team’s afternoon practice at Meralco Gym, on the eve of its clash against Chinese Taipei.
The naturalized big man said that this early, the team is anticipating the visitors to test the Filipino shooters with their zone defense.
After all, the Philippines struggled to put the ball through the rim as it shot 38-percent from the field and a measly 29-percent clip from downtown, where it also missed its first eight attempts from threes.
“They’re gonna zone us a lot, and that’s from watching us play against Japan,” said Blatche, who finished with 13 points, 12 rebounds, five assists, three steals, and three blocks in the win. “They’re probably thinking that we’re gonna miss a lot of shots, but hopefully not.”
Blatche, however, expressed confidence that the Gilas shooters led by Jayson Castro, Roger Pogoy, and Matthew Wright will be able to knock down shots.
“Hopefully, we’ll be focused and hit the shots and play at a much higher level than Japan. If I get the ball and I see they double me, I have to pass the ball to the open man and hope he hits the shot. If I see my teammates struggling, if I have to take over, be aggressive, and try to get to the rim all the time, I will. It always depends,” he said.
“The number one thing on my mind is the win, not to go out there and get a bunch of points. It’s about winning and playing the game the right way.”