Gilas Pilipinas vs Lebanon at Fiba Asia Cup 2022. Basketball –FIBA
Another path to the knockout stages of the Fiba (International Basketball Federation) Asian Cup opened up for the Philippines after Lebanon’s massive loss to New Zealand in a battle of the Gilas tormentors on Friday night.
The Cedars’ 86-72 victory over the Tall Blacks opened the door to a scenario where the national team could face Syria or Kazakhstan in a surprise clash to qualify for the quarter-finals.
In light of that development, Gilas is expected to play either longtime regional power Iran or rising heavyweight Japan.
For the softer path to be possible, the Philippines will need to claim a big win. Gilas will face Kiwi this Sunday, 9pm at Istora Senayan in Jakarta, Indonesia, and national coach Chot Reyes intends to capitalize on that opportunity.
“We know that New Zealand is a very strong team. But one thing they can’t take away from these players is the fighting within them. They have a deep level of fighting in their hearts,” he said after India’s 101-59 match on Friday.
“No matter how difficult it is, no matter how adversity, we have a shot. We have an opportunity,” he added.
New Zealand, on the other hand, is shaping up to be an even more ferocious land. The incredible loss will make it even more difficult for Kiwi.
And it was coach Pero Cameron who said it: that Tall Blacks intend to win the tiebreak.
“[This is] play tournament and you have to learn on [the fly],” says the Kiwi mentor. “Winning is important to maintain where we are in the league. Good lesson learned and we need to be better. We expect ourselves to be better so we are looking forward to the next match.”
The Philippines has never won a match against New Zealand since Kiwi and the Australian took part in the regional showcase under the merger of the Asian Championships and Oceania Championships in 2017.
Their last two games resulted in losses: An 88-63 hit in front of a home crowd in February, and then an even more embarrassing 106-60 loss on the road last month.
Fans who can’t watch the match live on TV can stream it via the Smart GigaPlay app. Smart subscribers, with prepaid or postpaid plans, can stream Fiba Asia Cup matches live for free.
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