BIG men June Mar Fajardo and Ariel John “AJ” Edu—both standing at 6-foot-10—prowled the shade, banged bodies with men larger than them and even scored on emphatic dunks in the FIBA World Cup.
For manning the fort where there’s no place for the weak, Fajardo and Edu reaped praises not only from Filipino fans but more impressively from big men like them who’re certified National Basketball Association (NBA) scoring giants.
“That guy, No. 15, a lot of credit to him,” said Bruno Fernando, Angola’s main man playing for the Atlanta Hawks. He’s also 6-foot-10.
“That guy impressed me, somebody that we all going to respect. He has a lot of game in him,” Fernando said. “They are a well-coached team. They made it tough for us, and we were able to come out there and fight against them.”
Fajardo, 33, and Cypriot-born Edu, young but effective at 23, and Gilas, however, eventually took their second consecutive loss in the tournament, 80-70, to the Angolans on Sunday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Fernando also had food words for Edu.
“Edu, tough guy, he gave me a tough game all night,” Fernando said. “They came out playing every detail and they’re all good.”
Before Fernando, there was the Dominican Republic’s Karl-Anthony Towns, the NBA All-Star of the Minnesota Timberwolves, who felt Edu’s strength during their won game, 87-81, at the start of the World Cup Friday at the Philippine Arena.
“He [Edu] is a fantastic player and an ultimate competitor. I love the competition he brought that night and it made me better,” Towns said.
“Filipinos are known for their culture for not giving up,” he added.
Fajardo, also known by his initials JMF, was “quiet” against Angola with only four points and seven rebounds but his intangibles mostly against Fernando were felt by the Angolan star.
Edu had nine points, six rebounds and one block also in the Angola game where he and Fajardo made statement slams in the closely-fought first half.
In the Dominican Republic game, Fajardo was a force with 16 points and seven rebounds, and so was Edu with seven points, five rebounds and two blocks.
Elsewhere, the global superstars—and NBA players—were dominating the scene.
It was a Luka Doncic show again as the Slovenian ace—after scoring 37 points in their opening-game victory against Venezuela—came through with 34 Monday in an 88-67 win over Georgia in Okinawa.
He also had 10 rebounds and six assists for Slovenia, which is on the cusp of making the second round, just like the United States team which continued to steamroller the opposition at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
The US advanced to the second round with a 109-81 victory over Greece.
Fan-favorite Austin Reaves scored 15 points with five rebounds and six assists, and Jalen Brunson and Anthony Edwards each scored 13 as the Americans went 2-and-0 to reach the second round.
The Americans advanced courtesy of their win coupled with New Zealand’s 95-87 overtime victory over Jordan.
Defending champion
Spain was also on track to defending the title following a 96-78 rout of Brazil with former NBA player Willy Hernangómez topscoring with 14 points and Juan Nunez and Santi Aldama of the Memphis Grizzlies each finishing with 13 for their team which is also unbeaten in two matches.
Asian countries in the World Cup—except for Japan which beat Finland, 98-88, at home Sunday in Okinawa— still couldn’t squeeze in victories with South Sudan routing continental giant China, 89-69; New Zealand scraping past Jordan, 95-87, in overtime; and Ivory Coast edging Iran, 71-69, on Monday. With AP