Facing tall odds in Olympic qualifier, Gilas women out to protect top-flight status

Just before dismissing his charges, Gilas Pilipinas women’s head coach Patrick Aquino called for a huddle.

It wasn’t the usual kind where he heaps praises on a player and then offers points of improvement for another. In this one, on a hot steamy Monday afternoon at Aero Center basketball gym in Quezon City, he reached for reminders.

“I…