By Semih Tuna/ Stuna@eurohoops.net
Tbilisi, Georgia – “Before the shot, it was like I have to take it to win the game and after the silence of the crowd was a great feeling”.
Jonathan Tabu silenced the crowd in the Tbilisi new arena, as Belgium got the 79-76 win over the host country and can make qualification plans after this result. And 36 years old Tabu knows how to make it happen.
As he explained, Belgium must keep their head down despite this feeling: “Winning this first game in the Eurobasket against the host team is great. I know that now we have more confidence, but I also know from my experience that it’s not over. We have to reset and it will be like we don’t have a win, cause in the past we have won the first game, and then we lost all the rest. So this time we have to stay focused”.
On a personal note, Tabu knows how to take care of himself and despite his age, he is ready for at least one more year: “My secret? There’s no secret. Eat good, stretch enough and you can play until 37”.
And this experience also helps him feel the game since Georgia behind their crowd made a comeback, but Belgium finally prevailed: “I felt that the momentum was on their side, but we also had to stay calm, because we were controlling them and of course, our defense was the key. It made a difference after we were scoring baskets”.