Gilas puts unblemished record on the line against Chinese Taipei
Gilas Pilipinas unbeaten record in the Group B of the FIBA Asia Cup qualifiers will be on the line when they face Chinese Taipei tonight, February 20, 7:00 PM at the Taipei Heping basketball gymnasium.
The Philippine team has already qualified for the Asian Cup tournament set in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia from August 5-17 as they swept the first two windows to have a 4-0 win-loss record.
On the other hand, the Taiwanese are battling for survival as they only have one win in the tournament against three losses. The only team that they have beaten so far is Hong Kong, China (0-4) whom they dismantled at home, 88-55.
A win will give them a higher chance to finish third place in Group B and make it to the Qualifying Tournament among third placed teams and a possible last-minute shot of making it to Jeddah.
In their first encounter last year, the Philippines defeated Chinese Taipei, 106-53, at the Philsports Arena. The Filipinos would like to repeat the win but are expecting a tougher battler as they face a team looking for redemption.
Though the Filipinos have already qualified for the Asian Cup tournament, Gilas head coach Tim Cone emphasized that they will use this third and final window as preparation for the said tourney.
After tonight’s game, Gilas will fly to New Zealand to battle the Tall Blacks on February 23 in Auckland.
Like Gilas, the Tall Blacks have already qualified for the Asian Cup with a 3-1 record, and will also use the final window to prepare for the next tournament.
The Philippine team came off a five-day, three-game friendly in Doha, Qatar, where they ended up with a 1-2 record, its lone win coming at the expense of the home team, 74-71.
"That's what being a professional basketball player is all about. You have to be ready to play regardless of where and what time. You got to put your best foot forward at all times," said Chris Newsome regarding their national team duties where they have to play five games in three different countries in just about a week.
"Tough schedule, but that's just the way it is this window," Dwight Ramos added.
Gilas might have a tough schedule but it will also give the Philippine team a chance to be tougher and fight better in the higher level of basketball competition.
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