MANILA, Philippines—Gilas Pilipinas faces an uphill climb in the 2025 Fiba Asia Cup, where it battles some of the continent’s toughest teams.
SCHEDULE: Gilas Pilipinas at 2025 Fiba Asia Cup
Qualifying for the event is one thing but going up against Asia’s best is another.
Inquirer Sports breaks down how Gilas booked a ticket to the continental competition and what’s at stake in the Jeddah games.
How Gilas reached the Fiba Asia Cup
FILE–Gilas Pilipinas ahead of its match up in the 2025 Fiba Asia Cup qualifiers. –FIBA PHOTO
The Philippines successfully booked its ticket to the Asia Cup after a stellar showing in two qualifying windows and a losing stand in the final window.
The hunt for a slot in the Asia Cup officially started in February last year with 24 teams vying for just 16 tickets to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Gilas easily breezed through the first two games in February, beating Hong Kong and Chinese Taipei.
With two wins under their belt, the Philippines continued to roll in the November window, racking up victories over Hong Kong and even pulling off an upset against New Zealand.
READ: Gilas Pilipinas beats New Zealand for first time in Fiba
Thanks to their 4-0 start, Gilas easily punched its ticket to the Asia Cup. That may have affected their mindset in the final window of qualifiers.
Already guaranteed a spot, the Philippines got complacent and dropped its last two games of the qualifiers at the hands of fortified Chinese Taipei and New Zealand.
In the end, Gilas finished with a 4-2 record in the qualifiers–good enough for a spot in the Jeddah games.
Who is suiting up for Gilas Pilipinas
As coach Tim Cone and the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) emphasized, Gilas is sticking with a core roster that has already competed together.
Only one name from the qualifying roster was removed: Mason Amos. Kai Sotto was also left out, but due to a torn ACL. Other than that, the Nationals return with mostly the same personnel.
Ginebra mainstays Scottie Thompson, Japeth Aguilar and even Jamie Malonzo, who shocked the Gin Kings on Thursday night after signing with Kyoto Hannaryz, stay in the Final 12.
READ: Familiar faces lead Gilas Pilipinas Final 12 for Fiba Asia Cup
Naturalized forward Justin Brownlee is also included, fresh off a monster double-double in Gilas’ most recent tune-up against the Macau Black Bears, in his return to the roster.
Big man AJ Edu, who missed the first two windows of the qualifiers, will be there for Gilas come the real competition.
Japanese B.League and Korean Basketball League champion Carl Tamayo is also on deck alongside Levanga Hokkaido import Dwight Ramos.
READ: Gilas energized by Oftana’s status amid Fajardo’s injury concern
Kevin Quiambao, who went on an intense training camp in Sacramento, also remains in the final lineup alongside Chris Newsome.
Newly-minted PBA Philippine Cup champions CJ Perez and June Mar Fajardo are also Jeddah with fatigue notwithstanding, along with fellow finalist Calvin Oftana.
The last cut from the Final 12 were RJ Abarrientos and Troy Rosario, who were both in uniform for Gilas’ last friendly before the departure to Saudi Arabia.
Who is Gilas up against at the Fiba Asia Cup
Gilas Pilipinas’ June Mar Fajardo during a game against New Zealand Tall Blacks in the 2025 Fiba Asia Cup qualifiers. –FIBA PHOTO
The best way to describe Gilas’ upcoming schedule is “same, but different.”
The Philippines was drawn into Group D for pool play alongside Chinese Taipei, New Zealand, and Iraq. While Gilas has no recent history with Iraq, the other two teams are familiar foes.
During the qualifiers, the Philippines posted a 1-1 record against both Chinese Taipei and New Zealand, then suffered back-to-back lopsided losses to both teams in the final window.
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Tohi Smith-Milner starred in that last game against Gilas Pilipinas and will lead the Tall Blacks’ campaign in the Fiba Asia Cup along side Jack Andrew, Taylor Britt, Flynn Cameron, Max Darling, Carlin Davison, Ben Gold, Mojave King, Taine Murray, Jordan Ngatai, Dontae Russo-Nance and new addition Jordan Hunt.
Chinese Taipei, which last time leaned on the hot shooting of Ting-Chien Lin, Mohammad Gadiaga and Chun Hsiang Lu, will be Gilas’ first opponent in group play on Wednesday at 2 a.m., Manila time.
The Philippines will then face New Zealand on Tuesday and Iraq on Saturday.
What Gilas needs to do to advance
Gilas Pilipinas coach Tim Cone during the Philippine team’s sendoff game against the Macau Black Bears.–MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net
No matter how they finish in the group stage, Gilas will still have a shot at the quarterfinals.
However, it is crucial to finish as the top seed. The best teams from each group will advance straight to the quarterfinals.
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Should Gilas fall to second place or lower, they will face a counterpart from Group C based on similar rankings. For example, 2C faces 2D, 3C faces 3D, and so on. The same format applies to Groups A and B.
If Gilas misses a direct quarterfinal berth, it could end up facing Group C opponents such as China, Jordan, India, or host Saudi Arabia.
Unlike before, the Fiba Asia Cup is no longer a qualifier for the World Cup or the Olympics.
Still, the winner will carry the prestigious title of Asia Cup champion for three years before the next edition of the tournament.
