MANILA, Philippines – Moral victories are not enough for Gilas Pilipinas.

Team manager Richard del Rosario said the squad is far from satisfied after a close loss to Turkiye (Turkey) in the first of two friendly games before the Philippines sees action in the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Riga, Latvia.

Staying within striking distance of their world No. 23 foes for the whole game, the Filipinos ultimately absorbed an 84-73 defeat.

“It was a tough loss against Turkey. We had our first taste of the type of opposition we will be facing in the OQT,” said Del Rosario. “While others may see it as a satisfying first game, our team mindset is almost is not enough.”

“We only have one shot at making it to the Olympics and we cannot be satisfied with almost winning.”

Closing out on shooters should be a priority for the Filipinos in the OQT for the Paris Games after the Turkish – missing NBA players Alperen Sengun and Cedi Osman – knocked down 14 treys.

The Philippines trailed by just 5 points down the stretch, 73-78, before Turkey sealed the deal with a pair of wide-open three-pointers.

Protecting the ball is also a point of improvement as Gilas Pilipinas recorded almost as many turnovers (17) as assists (19).

But the silver linings in the loss were the Philippines’ winning the rebounding battle (39-29) and shooting an efficient 31-of-61 (51%) from the field despite going a cold 5-of-17 (29%) clip from three-point distance.

It does not get easier for the Filipinos as they battle world No. 15 Poland in another tuneup match on Saturday, June 29 (Sunday, June 30, Manila time).

“We move on to the next game with a firmer belief that we can hold our own against higher-ranked teams with a real chance of reaching our mission of making it to Paris,” said Del Rosario.

After the pair of friendly games, Gilas Pilipinas heads to Riga for the OQT, where world No. 6 Latvia and No. 23 Georgia await. – Rappler.com