Chot Reyes all praises for Mason Amos, Jamie Malonzo in Gilas' home win vs Lebanon

Gilas Pilipinas head coach Chot Reyes heaped praises on Mason Amos and Jamie Malonzo, who fueled their second unit in national team's 107-96 victory over Lebanon for the sixth window of the 2023 FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers on Friday.

Amos didn't disappoint in his Gilas men's debut, finishing with 13 points on a perfect 100-percent shooting percentage from the field while Malonzo had 15 markers, five rebounds, and six assists as the Filipinos got back at the Cedars.

Amos and Malonzo played crucial roles as Gilas faced a frontcourt shortage with big men Kai Sotto, Japeth Aguilar, and Carl Tamayo out for this window. And Reyes was glad to see the duo live up to the challenge of backing up starting center June Mar Fajardo and naturalized player Justin Brownlee.

"We really thought that was going to be the key off the bench, those two guys. They were basically our bigs after June Mar and Justin," Reyes said.

"Basically it was only Mason and Jamie that we have because as you know, we were decimated with the lack of our other big players. So the fact that they both played well, I think, was a big factor for us. The bench really gave us a spark."

Amos, for his part, said he just stepped up, especially in front of a jam-packed Philippine Arena.

"It was exciting. There’s a lot of people here, a great community, and I love the Philippines. It’s good representing the country and I’m thankful," the 18-year-old 6-foot-7 bruiser said.

"Just energy coming in off the bench, really something new like I just stepped up and shot the ball. It feels great. It feels different from the youth club, so it’s something great."

—JMB, GMA Integrated News