Good as advertised, Gilas anchor says of new Fil-Am recruit
Gilas Pilipinas girls are deep in preparation for the Fiba Girls’s Asia Cup. —INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
Gilas Pilipinas Girls will probably be fielding a smaller squad within the Fiba (Worldwide Basketball Federation) Girls’s Asia Cup in Sydney, Australia, subsequent week, however the Nationals stay an optimistic lot, all because of this system’s newest recruit.
Vanessa de Jesus, a Filipino-American standout from Duke College, who owns a famend males’s program within the US NCAA, will probably be backstopping a squad led by veterans Jack Danielle Animam, Afril Bernardino and Janine Pontejos.
And to date, the Blue Devils guard has nothing been wanting spectacular.
“She’s nearly as good as marketed,” Animam mentioned of De Jesus in a message to the Inquirer on Tuesday, simply moments earlier than Gilas figured in a tuneup recreation in opposition to Aussie membership Keilor Thunder.
“And she or he’s good all in all,” she went on, which ought to bode nicely for Gilas so far as chemistry is anxious.
Apart from taking part in alongside this system’s fixtures, De Jesus will even see motion with newcomers Louna Ozar and Jhazmin Joson. Finishing the squad are Chack Cabinbin, Mikka Cacho, Camille Clarin, Khate Castillo, Angel Surada and Ella Fajardo—all of whom performed within the current Southeast Asian Video games in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, the place the Filipinos secured the silver medal.
Whether or not De Jesus is sufficient to elevate Gilas’ marketing campaign stays to be seen. Luckily, coach Pat Aquino and the remainder of the Gilas Girls’s mind belief could have a few possibilities to check simply that this week in Melbourne, Australia.
4 spots
Apart from the Thunder, Gilas Girls is scheduled to play the Casey Cavaliers on Thursday earlier than touring to Sydney for the continental showcase which dangles 4 spots for the Olympic Qualifying Tournaments to the Paris Summer season Video games subsequent 12 months.
The Philippines battles the towering hosts on June 26, 5:30 p.m. (Manila time), then the six-time champions Japanese, earlier than rounding out its Group B marketing campaign in opposition to the Taiwanese.
In the meantime, Gilas Males wrapped up its quick camp on Tuesday in Calamba, Laguna province, full of optimism.
Nationwide coach Chot Reyes mentioned that naturalized participant Justin Brownlee is anticipated to hitch Gilas in its tour of Europe, the place it can tackle varied nationwide groups and professional golf equipment.
“Brownlee must endure a nonbasketball medical process, so he’ll simply meet us in Estonia,” he mentioned in an Instagram entry additionally on Tuesday.
Reyes and his expenses will depart for Estonia this Thursday and are scheduled to go to Lithuania on July 1 for its buildup geared towards the Fiba World Cup that the Philippines will probably be cohosting alongside Japan and Indonesia. INQ
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