Gilas youth brigade arrives

As painful as that heartbreaker in Auckland was, Gilas Pilipinas could still find a positive takeaway moving forward.

- By OLMIN LEYBA

The program’s investment on the youth brigade is starting to pay off.

And as early as now, Gilas’ young guns are ready to take charge under the bright lights.

“That's how you evolve a team, right? You try to win with your veterans and you develop your young guys. Our young guys have been developing over the last year and a half. Every time they've come into a window, they've gotten better,” Gilas coach Tim Cone said.

With Justin Brownlee shut down by the rough-defending host New Zealand Tall Blacks yet again in the Nationals’ 102-106 double-overtime defeat in the FIBA World Cup Qualifiers, it was the youthful ones that did the heavy lifting.