BOCAUE, Bulacan — Mason Amos admitted to being star-struck when he finally suited up for Gilas Pilipinas in its sixth window clash with Lebanon in the FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers Friday at the Philippine Arena.
Speaking after their 107-96 win before an estimated 30,000 fans, the former Gilas Youth member said the presence of stars from the Philippine Basketball Association and Japan B.League left him nervous.
“Playing with PBA players, professional players as an 18-year-old, there is a lot of pressure that comes with that,” said Amos, who will play for Ateneo de Manila University this year in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines Season 86 men’s basketball tournament.
With bigs such as Kai Sotto, Carl Tamayo and Japeth Aguilar begging off for various reasons, the Filipino-Australian big man made sure he won’t mess up his chance.
Against the Lebanese in front of Filipino fans, Amos delivered a perfect game, making all of his five attempts by only playing eight minutes and 30 seconds.
Gilas head coach Chot Reyes even said the 6-foot-7 slotman will continue to grow as one of the pillars of the program.
“Mason is 18 years old. He still has a lot to learn, he still has a lot to develop especially on defense but you can see his shooting prowess for a big man,” Reyes said.
“That’s the weapon that we feel that we can use moving forward. I’m very happy about that development.”
