MANILA, Philippines, September 23 ------ Gilas Pilipinas’ road to redemption in the FIBA Asia Cup begins. The Philippines will tangle with New Zealand, Chinese Taipei, and Hong Kong in the Asia Cup Qualifiers as they got bunched in Group B following the draw. Improving to No. 38 in the world and No. 8 in Asia, Gilas Pilipinas is expected to advance to the Asia Cup, where it looks to redeem itself after failing to reach the quarterfinals for the first time in 15 years in the previous edition.
Only New Zealand is ranked higher at No. 21 in the world, while Chinese Taipei and Hong Kong sit at No. 78 and No. 119, respectively. Teams will play each other twice over three windows, with the top two earning automatic qualification to the Asia Cup, which will be staged in 2025. Meanwhile, the third-placed teams from each of the six groups will duke it out for the last four Asia Cup spots to complete the 16-team cast. The three windows will be played in February 2024, November 2024, and February 2025.
Here are the groupings:
• Group A – Australia, Korea, Thailand, Indonesia
• Group B – Philippines, New Zealand, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong
• Group C – China, Japan, Mongolia, Guam
• Group D – Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Palestine, Iraq
• Group E – Iran, Kazakhstan, India, Qatar
• Group F – Lebanon, Syria, UAE, Bahrain
Source: rappler.com
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