Yeng Guiao on loss to Korea: It's my fault

“It’s my fault.”

That was show national coach Yeng Guiao described the Philippines 91-82 defeat to South Korea in the Asian Games basketball tournament on Monday, which saw another episode of heartbreak for Pinoy hoops fans at the hands of their East Asian tormentors.

It was especially frustrating as the Philippines had built up an advantage in the second half, only to squander it down the stretch thanks to the Koreans' three-point shooting and offensive rebounding.

“I take responsibility for this loss,” Guiao said after the game.

South Korea hit five three-pointers in the fourth period, even as the Philippines went cold from deep owing to their opponents' 3-2 matchup zone.

"We just weren't comfortable with the zone. Even Jordan (Clarkson) had a lot of problems dealing with it. They just zoned us all game long. They stuck with the zone, lived and died with the zone, and we couldn't adjust in time,” Guiao said.

Clarkson, the Cleveland Cavaliers guard who secured a last-minute clearance from the NBA to join the tournament, scored 24 points in the Philippines' losing effort.

But South Korea's naturalized big man Ricardo Ratliffe, a former PBA import, dominated down low for South Korea, finishing with 30 points and 15 rebounds.

The Philippines still has a couple of assignments in the classification phase, where it could salvage a fifth place finish.

“We’ll go for fifth. It’s the least we could do,” Guiao said. —JST, GMA News