Justin Brownlee ready for Gilas duties after PBA Finals loss

Gilas Pilipinas’ Justin Brownlee during a game against Chinese Taipei in the Fiba Asia Cup qualifiers.–MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net

Gilas Pilipinas ace Justin Brownlee quickly turned his sights onto the next task on Friday night just as he was processing Barangay Ginebra’s botched bid to rule the PBA Governors’ Cup.

“You know, it’s tough for us. Like I said, we fought hard, but we definitely still got a responsibility,” he said shortly after TNT dropped the hammer on him and the Gin Kings in Game 6. “[We] got to go out there and fight for the country.”

Easily the tip of the National Five’s sword, Brownlee will play in a pair of homestands making up the second window of the Fiba Asia Cup Qualifiers later this month.

The Nationals play the rejigged New Zealand Tall Blacks for the first time this cycle and then hope to repeat over Hong Kong on Nov. 21 and Nov. 24, respectively, at Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.

“We got a few days before going to training camp. Maybe a week or so, so we just got to get ready for all that and prepare to do our best,” Brownlee said. “New Zealand is one of the top teams in the world, so it’s going to be a good matchup and test for us.”

Training camp is penciled for Nov. 15 again at Inspire Sports Academy in Calamba Laguna, while a friendly ahead of the two matches is still being planned.

Triple towers

The Gilas brain trust has since said they’re expecting the Japan-based standouts to get back to Manila earlier, especially AJ Edu, who is expected to play in his first Gilas game following a knee problem that kept him from backstopping the Nationals after the World Cup held in Manila last year.

June Mar Fajardo, the eight-time PBA MVP and the 7-foot-3 Kai Sotto will complete the towering Gilas frontline for those two games.

As things stand, only Jamie Malonzo is the lone player unlikely to suit up for Gilas. The two-way forward remains in sickbay, no thanks to the last-second leg injury he sustained during the Philippine Cup back in April against NorthPort.

“He won’t play [for] Gilas until he gets back with Ginebra, and plays the team,” coach Tim Cone said in a separate chat. “He has to play for Ginebra before he’s available to play for Gilas.”

The national coach said that either Ginebra veteran Japeth Aguilar or La Salle’s Mason Amos, the program’s reserves, will be tasked to pick up the cudgels for Malonzo. INQ