IT was a long, 61-year-old wait, but it was all worth it.
Gilas Pilipinas won over Jordan, 70-60, with Justin Brownlee taking charge, as always.
The naturalized “Noypi” tabbed a team-high 20 points, 10 rebounds and five assists.
Brownlee was backstopped tonight by Ange Kouame who tallied 14 points, 11 boards, five steals and two blocks.
Other top scorers for Gilas were Chris Newsome with 13 points and reigning PBA MVP Scottie Thompson with 11.
Winning the men’s basketball gold medal at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China was made even sweeter as Gilas Pilipinas had to go a longer route to reach the quarters after they lost to Jordan by 25 points.
They had to dispatch Qatar, which the team handily did, then faced the Islamic Republic of Iran in the quarterfinals, and then eventually China in the semis.
The last two games will be in the record books as Gilas beat Iran and China by a solitary point to be able to face its tormentor in the finals.
But this time, it was a Gilas show, and that show shone gold where the Philippines is again the kings of Asian basketball.
With the triumph of Gilas, this ups the country’s gold medal haul at the Asiad to four, matching the same gold medal tally for the Philippines during the 2018 Asiad in Jakarta-Palembang courtesy of golf (women’s individual and team play), women’s weightlifting and women’s skateboarding.
(PHOTO CREDIT: Smart Gilas Pilipinas Facebook page)