'Shocked' Cone hopes Gilas moves forward after historic win vs Latvia in FIBA OQT

Gilas Pilipinas head coach Tim Cone himself said he was 'shocked' after the Philippines pulled off an 89-80 upset against world no. 6 Latvia in the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament (OQT) on early Thursday (Philippine time) in Riga.

The win was also historic as it was the first Philippine win against a European team in an official FIBA competition since 1960, according to FIBA.

"I'm totally shocked to be sitting in front of you guys after winning this basketball game. This is not something we thought we're gonna do, I'll be honest with you," Cone said in a press conference after their FIBA OQT opener.

"We wanted to come in and compete and really put on a good show. We got started early. We hit shots early and thankfully Latvia missed shots," Cone said, adding that Latvia was missing the services of guard Art?rs Žagars.

Cone also admitted that there were rough stretches in the second half as Latvia made runs but the national team head coach credited his wards for the defense they put up.

With the win, Gilas needs to win against Georgia to advance to the semis. A loss by 18 points or less, however, will still put the Philippines to the next round..

"We didn't come here to win one game. Hopefully, we can move on and get to the next round and have a chance to maybe play Latvia again in the Finals."

Latvia head coach Luca Banchi, meanwhile, said the team learned a lesson or two from the loss.

"The Philippines had an excellent performance from the very beginning. They were very sharp, they imposed their physicality, but also sharpness to find a good solution on offense. From our side, there is a good lesson. That game can set the tone of such a tournament," said Banchi.

Latvia is already assured of a slot in the FIBA OQT semifinals, while the Philippines will still play Georgia on Thursday night.

—JKC, GMA Integrated News