Gilas discard Bulanadi leads Steel to second round

Swingman Allyn Bulanadi refused to sulk after his omission from Gilas Pilipinas in the first window of the Fiba Asia Cup Qualifiers.

But while the national team basked in the glow of a 100-70 victory over Indonesia on Sunday, the Gilas pool member focused his efforts on taking care of some unfinished business with the Basilan Steel in the Chooks-To-Go MPBL Lakan South division Playoffs.

“I just took it as motivation,” Bulanadi said on his failure to make the Gilas lineup even after training with the team the past few weeks. “So when I arrived in Basilan, I was really determined to go all-out and help our team win.”

A pumped-up and motivated Bulanadi proved key for the Steel down the stretch as the former San Sebastian star fired five of his 11 points inside the last 87 seconds that helped put away the Iloilo United Royals, 70-63, in Game 2 on Monday night at Lamitan Gym.

Similar to his MPBL debut two months ago in the same gym, Bulanadi hit the biggest shots as his layup off a nifty crossover broke a 63-all deadlock.

Bulanadi returned to hit a 25-foot triple over Al Tamsi on the next play to put the game beyond reach with 48.9 seconds remaining. INQ