The stakes couldn’t be higher as Gilas Pilipinas tangled with host Saudi Arabia in a midnight showdown yesterday that will decide who advances to the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup quarterfinals in Jeddah.
The Filipinos and the Saudis will meet again after three years at the King Abdullah Sports City at 12:00 midnight, with the winner setting a qualifier date with no less than two-time defending champion Australia.
With a lot on the line, both teams expect a dogfight.
Gilas Pilipinas head coach Tim Cone said he understands it’s going to be a tough road ahead for his crew, especially with how they fared in their last three games against Chinese Taipei, New Zealand and Iraq.
The Filipinos struggled early on after dropping their matches to Chinese Taipei and the Tall Blacks, but found their breakthrough win against the Iraqis as they punched their ticket to the qualification to quarterfinals.
Still, there’s no letup for Gilas.
“We know the road is going to be tough, we know we picked a tougher road to go, but we’re ready to accept that challenge,” Cone stressed following their 66-57 win over Iraq on August 9.
“It’s tough when you’re playing on your heels and playing behind all the time, which we did against Chinese Taipei, and we did it again against New Zealand, but what I like about our team is we just don’t quit.”
The same goes for Saudi Arabia, which sees the Philippines as among the top contenders in the tournament despite a 1-2 win-loss card in Group D.
The Philippines and Saudi Arabia have met only three times in FIBA tournaments, with the Filipinos winning on all occasions, the last of which was a 76-63 win during the fifth window of the 2023 FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers in Jeddah as well.
Kai Sotto led the way along with RR Pogoy and CJ Perez in that 13-point victory.
But Gilas isn’t putting much weight on the past, choosing instead to embrace the challenges at hand.
Justin Brownlee is once again expected to spearhead Gilas’ offense, but Cone urged the rest of the squad to step up amid the defensive focus on the naturalized forward.
Dwight Ramos, who scored a team-high 21 points in their last game, is tipped to provide the huge lift alongside the front-court tandem of June Mar Fajrdo and AJ Edu and the veteran presence of Scottie Thompson.
Gilas, though, might be one man down with Calvin Oftana hurting his ankle in their last outing. (GMA Integrated News)