Gilas fans not just being patriotic.

I was there for the battle for third. Between two teams which forced themselves to play on. I must assume Gilas players had a harder time just "getting up" for the game. To say "waking up" doesn't make sense since I'm sure many of the Gilas players didn't get any sleep. But both teams showed up, anyway. And so did the fans. Gilas fans. Philsports wasn't packed with Saturday's mammoth crowd. But there was a crowd for Sunday's game nonetheless. And it was involved in the game. Surprisingly.

I spotted families, couples, mga barkada, there were even spectators in the bleachers. There was a father who brought along his son (I really enjoy seeing parents bringing along their children to sporting events). There was a fan who proudly carried a Marcio Lassiter poster. Didn't seem like they were there because of commitment to the country. Or commitment to the sponsors. Or commitment to the powers that be. Hindi naman sila mukhang obligado. Wala namang ordinance. Especially since they showed up even after the deflating loss against Mahram-Iran.

Maybe Gilas fans like ball movement, outside shooting, kick-out passes. Maybe they like the Gilas players. Maybe they like Coach Rajko. Who knows, baka naman they wanted to see Charles, that other Tiu who sits behind the Gilas bench.

Whatever the reasons, fans wanted to be there. Even for a battle for third. Whatever the reasons, Gilas has provided these, in enough quantities, to gain a devoted, free-willed following. MH