Korea again sends us to tears, but this time of the good variety

The dunk.

It was of a breakaway variety, and it was thrown down with such ferocity by Korea’s Lee Seung Jun that it seemed to suck the air out of the Mall of Asia Arena.

It had given Korea a 74-73 lead with a little over four minutes left in the game, and it capped a furious rally by the Koreans from nine points down. Suddenly, what seemed like a sure win and a ticket to the finals and the World Cup of Basketball was vanishing before our very own eyes. What the heck was going on here?

But more than just give Korea the lead, that dunk triggered a dreaded sense of déjà vu among Filipino basketball fans. This can’t be happening again, was the collective thought of those who had followed our national team’s plight against this team of sharpshooters since the 1980s.

Here come those Koreans, out to break our hearts and send us to tears one more time.

I should know. I witnessed all those losses.

I watched on our black and white TV back in 1986 when Allan Caidic drove for a lean-in jumper and potential game-winner in the semifinals of the Seoul Asian Games. The shot rimmed out, but the referee blew his whistle. Yes, two free throws by the best Filipino shooter in history! I thought. Instead, the referee motioned for an offensive foul, and Caidic crumpled to the floor like he had just been hit by a sucker punch. Game over. Korea wins, 103-102.

Sixteen years later, I listened on my car radio while driving as Dondon Hontiveros and then Olsen Racela nailed back-to-back triples to give the Philippines a 68-66 lead in – déjà vu – the semifinals of the 2002 Asian Games in Busan, Korea. The Koreans missed their next shot, and Racela grabbed the rebound and was fouled with 14 seconds left.

Alas, Racela missed both free throws. Korea rebounded, and set up for a final shot. The ball was knocked loose with four seconds left, but somehow found its way into the hands of Lee Sang Min.

Lee had missed all his previous six attempts from three-point distance that day, but he calmly faked off two Philippine defenders and buried a triple at the buzzer to give Korea a 69-68 win.

Remember, I was driving then, so I had to rely on the voice of the play-by-play announcer. He had gotten so excited that I couldn’t hear what he was saying, but I made out the last two ominous words.

“Pumasok!”

“Patay.”

There are certainly better places to be when confronted with such a heart-wrenching loss. Unfortunately I was stuck in a traffic jam somewhere in San Juan, and I couldn’t even vent properly.

ALSO READ: Will the Philippines finally beat Korea?

I drove in stunned silence for the next 15 minutes. I somehow made my way to a mall, where a delayed telecast of the game was playing. The people watching didn’t even know the game was over. Remember, this was way before Facebook and Twitter came into our lives.

I couldn’t bring myself to tell a few of them not to bother to watch, though. But one guy approached me and said, “Pare, huwag ka na manood. Talo daw.”

“Alam ko,” I meekly replied. He shook his head wistfully and walked away. The crowd cheered after Racela nailed his three and then grabbed that rebound. But when Lee sank his game-winner, the whole activity area of the mall had all the excitement of a morgue.

Then just two years ago, I watched Korea break our hearts one last time.

It was the battle for third place in this very same tournament, and I felt we would finally win this one. Korea had started the game really flat, obviously worn out from playing China the previous night.

This was the original Gilas team, and Jimmy Alapag, as he is wont to do, had taken charge. Thanks to his timely hits, Gilas had taken an 11-point lead into the fourth period.

For the first three periods, the Koreans couldn’t throw a rock into the ocean. They only had 36 points and looked out of synch.

Of course, this being Korea versus the Philippines, strange things started happening again.

Korea hit a triple. And then another. And another. After managing only 36 point in the first 30 minutes, they suddenly put up 34 in the last 10. The Philippines’ comfortable margin had been erased, and Kelly Williams and Marcio Lassiter both missed crucial free throws down the stretch. JVee Casio had one last chance to win it, but he missed badly on a rushed triple at the buzzer.

He broke down in tears afterwards. Korea escaped with a 70-68 win. For those keeping count, that’s a one-point loss in 1986, a one-point loss in 2002, and a two-point loss in 2011.

It was against this backdrop that the Philippines once again met Korea Saturday night. But there was a big difference this time: we had the homecourt advantage.

Even with the crowd behind Gilas, I know many fans desperately wanted to avoid another close match that go either way. Bury them and then coast to a safe win. Avoid another buzzer-beater. Avoid another heartbreak and avoid another round of tears.

So when Gilas jumped to a 65-56 lead at the end of three periods, with Marcus Douthit injured at that, I was feeling a little good.

Then Korea opened the fourth period with a triple. Here we go again.

I couldn’t bear to watch, so I actually stepped out of the arena for a few minutes. Maybe they’ll protect the lead and when I go back, they’ll be safely ahead with only a few minutes left.

It was wishful thinking, of course. I returned just in time to see Lee elevating for a breakaway dunk that gave Korea back the lead.

You have got to be kidding me, I thought. This cannot be happening. Losing this one would be doubly painful, because it would happen in front of 19,000 Filipino fans.

But call it the law of averages, call it the basketball gods finally smiling our way, or simply call it Jimmy Alapag doing what he does best, we finally found a way to beat Korea.

It’s hard to describe what I felt when the buzzer sounded. I guess the closest feeling was when UP won the UAAP title in 1986. But I was too naïve and too young then; I didn’t exactly bear witness to UP’s previous losses to really fathom the significance of that championship.

No, this one was different. It was a win for the ages, a win for Caidic, Racela, Casio and all those other players that Korea had driven to tears.

This time, Korea actually did drive our players (and coaches, and perhaps half the country) to tears once again. Thankfully, this time they were tears of joy.