LONDON, United Kingdom (2012 London Olympics): China coach Bob Donewald Jr. was in a motivational mood trying to lift the spirits of his team who now face an almost unsurmountable task of leading his team to the quarterfinals in the 2012 London Olympics men’s basketball competition.

“I know these guys are down after three losses. I will help them pick their heads up and let them know it’s not the end. We have two more games and we just cannot give it up” Donewald said.

China have lost all their three games so far – the latest to Australia on Thursday (Game report) and need to win both their remaining games – against medal contenders Brazil (Saturday) and hosts Great Britain (Monday).

 “Physical play is our weakness,” Donewald said.

“We were worn out in the latter half of the game every time we played against physical teams. Brazil has three NBA players and is an even tougher opponent. But we will give what we can and learn from these experiences,” Donewald said looking ahead at China’s next game.

Donewald further bemoaned the fitness issues his side faced in the game.

“They wore us down. The fourth quarter showed it. We just tired out and couldn’t deal with it,” he said.

“We haven’t arrived yet, clearly. We are still get fatigued. We need a couple more Yis and Wang Shipengs out there.”

“I made some shots in the first half when the offense ran smoothly,” said Wang Shipeng whose 21 points led all the scorers.

“But in the second half, their defense cut down our connection. I cannot do it again without the support from big guys inside the paint,” the Guangdong Southern Tigers guard said.

“I’m very disappointed,” Wang Shipeng added.

“We just want to fight for every single match. The morale of the team is just not to give up. We want to play a better standard.”

“Rebound is a big problem as we don’t have real post guys to protect the board. There is no problem for the outside shooters,” he said.

FIBA Asia