THIRDY RAVENA AT CHRIS ROSS NAGSUMBATAN | SMB NILAMPASO NG JAPAN B LEAGUE - Video

As PBA champion teams struggle to compete in the East Asia Super League in Japan, Filipino basketball player Thirdy Ravena posted on Twitter to dispel rumors that Filipinos cannot play well in other countries.

San Miguel Beermen suffered a big loss against Ryuku Golden Kings, 96-68, in their first game of the EASL Champions Week, followed by TNT Tropang Giga's 33-point loss to the Utsunomiya Brex of Korea. Ravena's tweet went viral, and veteran SMB guard Chris Ross quickly responded, saying there is no reason to bring others down and to calm down. San Miguel lost to Ryukyu Golden Kings on Thursday at Nikkan Arena, where they were unable to keep up with the hot team of Golden Kings, led by former PBA import Allen Durham. June Mar Fajardo of San Miguel suffered a knee injury and did not return to the game after colliding with Ryukyu's import Jack Cooley in the second quarter. Cameron Clark led San Miguel with 25 points, while CJ Perez was the only local player who scored in double digits with 12 points. San Miguel and TNT Tropang Giga both experienced significant losses in their matches.

Carl Tamayo, Ryukyu's new recruit, scored four points in seven minutes before his debut in the Japan B.League against Kai Sotto and Hiroshima Dragonflies following the EASL.