Tag: absence

Tim Cone rues Kai Sotto absence in Gilas loss to Brazil

On: By: admin


Injured center Kai Sotto sits on Gilas Pilipinas bench during a game against Brazil in the Fiba Olympic Qualifying Tournament (OQT) in Riga, Latvia.–FIBA PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—Gilas Pilipinas sorely missed the absence of Kai Sotto in a loss to Brazil on Saturday that ended its hopes of making the Paris Olympics.

Sotto was sidelined due to a bruised rib he suffered against Georgia on Thursday.

Without the 7-foot-3 center, Gilas just couldn’t provide enough resistance in the paint against Brazil, which was led by former NBA veteran Bruno Caboclo.

READ: Gilas struggles against Brazil in Fiba OQT loss

“We don’t want to make excuses but losing Kai was big for us,” said Cone after Gilas’ 71-60 loss. “It just took away our depth in the front line.”

The 6-foot-9 Caboclo, a first round pick by the Toronto Raptors in 2014, muscled his way to 15 points and 11 rebounds.

Gilas tried to fill the void by playing June Mar Fajardo extended minutes. The seven-time PBA MVP stepped up with 10 points and 11 rebounds but he could only do so much in 30 minutes of action.

READ: Tim Cone on Gilas’ Fiba OQT campaign: Now we know we can compete

“It [Sotto’s absence] forced June Mar Fajardo to overplay minutes and that all mushroomed from there but the bottom line is we just weren’t good enough tonight,” Cone said. “They played us with a really physical brand of basketball… We lacked in the big, we had to overplay our frontline.”

“More than anything, I think June Mar got really tired having to face 51 (Bruno Caboclo) and No. 6 (Cristiano Felicio). Those two guys banged on him and rotated on him and it was a tough battle for him being there by himself.”

Prior to the injury, Sotto averaged 11 points, four rebounds and 1.5 blocks in two games against Latvia and Georgia.

Sotto was among Gilas’ heroes in its stunning upset of world No. 6 Latvia on Thursday, posting 18 points, eight rebounds and a block in close to 33 minutes of play.



Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.


Your subscription has been successful.

Gilas makes up for absence of injured cogs in tune-up before OQT

On: By: admin


Gilas Pilipinas during a tune-up game against Taiwan Mustangs. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines—Gilas Pilipinas is down three men for the Fiba Olympic Qualifying Tournament but that doesn’t make them shorthanded, said coach Tim Cone.

Gilas will have to make do minus three key cogs with Scottie Thompson, AJ Edu and Jamie Malonzo all nursing injuries in the Paris qualifiers in Riga, Latvia.

So far, Gilas has shown just that following a 74-64 win over the Taiwan Mustangs in a tune-up game on Monday at Philsports Arena.

READ: Gilas’ Tim Cone says Scottie Thompson presence ‘irreplaceable’

“I don’t feel we’re shorthanded at all, I’m not a guy who plays 11 or 12 guys anyway,” explained Cone.

“You know me, I don’t play that many guys. I’m really an 8-9 man rotation. The reason why you have 12 guys is not necessarily for the game, you have 12 guys for practice. You have extra bodies in practice or in case somebody goes down. I don’t feel shorthanded, at all.”

Without a heady playmaker in Thompson, who has been dealing with a bulging disc, Brownlee made sure Gilas still got the ball moving with 15 assists.

Kai Sotto and Chris Newsome also stepped up in the absence of Malonzo and Edu, who are out with calf and knee injuries, respectively. Sotto and Newsome took care of business in the rebounding department, combining for 17 rebounds.

READ: Rankings don’t faze Justin Brownlee, Gilas in Latvia OQT

Dwight Ramos, meanwhile, led the way with 19 points, highlighted by four triples.

Cone, though, knows the OQT will require a lot more from his wards if Gilas is to defy the odds and claim a spot in the Paris Olympics.

“We got a lot of work to do ahead of us, that’s why we’re playing friendlies. Hopefully we get better and better as we move forward.”



Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.


Your subscription has been successful.

Choco Mucho, Alinsunurin hope to overcome stars’ absence

On: By: admin


Choco Mucho coach Dante Alinsunurin in the PVL.–MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines — Choco Mucho coach Dante Alinsunurin braces for big adjustments in the 2024 PVL Reinforced Conference in July as they are set to miss Alas Pilipinas players Sisi Rondina and Cherry Nunag.

Alinsunurin, who was hailed by the Collegiate Press Corps as the first-ever UAAP Men’s Volleyball Coach of the Year on Monday evening, bared some updates ahead of the upcoming second conference, where former MVP Rondina and veteran middle blocker Nunag will miss the action due to their duties with the Philippine women’s volleyball team.

Although the Alas members won’t play in the midseason conference due to the upcoming FIVB Challenger Cup in July and SEA V.League in August, the two-time PVL silver medalist coach is still hoping to get their players back in the latter part of the Reinforced or in the Invitational Conference in September, where the top four of the import-laden tournament will qualify and play with two guest teams.

READ: Dante Alinsunurin sculpts UAAP title after PVL shortcoming

“They won’t be able to play in the [early part of the conference]. That’s for sure. Because of the competitions in July and August. But we’re hoping that once the SEA V.League is done, they can make it at least in the Invitationals,” Alinsunurin told reporters. “We are currently requesting if they can rejoin our team after those leagues.”

For now, Choco Mucho is seeking to sign free agents, which he didn’t disclose, and draft players in the first-ever PVL Rookie Draft, where the Flying Titans will select the 11th pick.

“We’re hoping to sign free agents and use our draft picks to help our team and fill in the void in the second conference,” Alinsunurin said.

READ: Dante Alinsunurin back with PH men’s volleyball team as assistant

“We want to draft the players who can help us. It’s hard to give a specific position because we’re drafting the second to the least but we’re looking for a middle blocker, an outside hitter, and an opposite spiker.”

Alinsunurin, though, bared that Kat Tolentino, who missed the latter part of the All-Filipino Conference due to an auditory condition, is slowly regaining her form, while Des Cheng and Aduke Ogunsanya are still recovering from their ACL injuries.

“Kat has started [training with us]. At least her movement is back to 50 percent and she’s slowly recovering,” he said. “Des has started training but she’s still working her way back, she’s at 30%, while Aduke is still undergoing rehab.”



Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.


Your subscription has been successful.