Gilas Pilipinas looks to reassert mastery of Chinese Taipei as Team Phl seeks a two-game sweep in Round 1 of the FIBA World Cup qualifiers.
The Nationals, fierce rivals in the PBA but band of brothers in Team Phl, ride the momentum of a 77-71 win over Japan in Tokyo Friday as they face off with the Taiwanese at 7:30 p.m. Monday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Australia hosts Japan in Adelaide in the other game in Group B play in this Asian "WC" qualifiers.
The Philippines needs to make the Top Three in this group to advance to the next round versus the Top Three from among Iran, Iraq, Kazakhstan and Qatar.
But the Nationals are not looking far ahead. They're focused on Chinese Taipei which stunned the home team and the home crowd during the elims of the 2013 FIBA Asia Championship at the MOA Arena.
Sponsored content:
But the Taiwanese have since gone on a slide, failing to make the knockout round in the next Asian conclave in Changsha in 2015. A few months back, Taipei's Teams A and B suffered shattering losses to the Gilas cadets in the 2017 Jones Cup.
Gilas, meanwhile, has been far more consistent.
The Filipinos took the best the Japanese could offer in their showdown at the Komazawa Gymnasium in Tokyo. The Taiwanese, on the other hand, were an easy prey to the Aussies, 66-104, in their own turf at the Heping Sports Arena in Taipei.
It's the same venue where the Gilas cadets clobbered Taipei A, 88-72, then whipped Taipei B, 93-82, in the last Jones Cup.
A more potent group in Andray Blatche, Jayson Castro, June Mar Fajardo, Japeth Aguilar, Gabe Norwood, Troy Rosario, Calvin Abueva, Matthew Wright, RR Pogoy, Allein Maliksi, Kiefer Ravena and Kevin Alas will tangle with Team Taipei Monday.
Sponsored content:
Castro, Blatche, Norwood and Wright stood out in their conquest of Japan.
photo c/o fiba asia
