MANILA, Philippines – Will the fifth time be the charm for Gilas Pilipinas?
Still winless in four tries against New Zealand in FIBA competition, Gilas Pilipinas aims to finally solve the Tall Blacks’ puzzle when they clash in the second window of the FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers at the Mall of Asia Arena on Thursday, November 21.
The Filipinos have dropped their first four FIBA-sanctioned matches versus New Zealand by an average margin of 24.3 points, including a 92-75 setback in their last encounter in the Asia Cup back in 2022.
But with the Philippines parading a deeper and a more experienced 12-man lineup bannered by Justin Brownlee this time around, Gilas Pilipinas head coach Tim Cone believes the Filipinos are well capable of finally scoring a breakthrough win against the Kiwis.
“I don’t think they’ve seen a team like the team we’re assembling before so I think we got a shot at beating them,” said Cone.
Coming off a grueling PBA Governors’ Cup finals run with Barangay Ginebra, expect Brownlee to show no signs of fatigue and lead the charge for the Filipinos as they shoot for a 3-0 slate in Group B.
Gilas Pilipinas is currently tied with New Zealand at the top spot of Group B with identical 2-0 records, and the winner of this highly anticipated showdown will inch closer to securing an outright berth in next year’s Asia Cup.
Aside from Brownlee — who led the Philippines with 21 points per game in the first window — look for Japan B. League standouts Kai Sotto and Dwight Ramos to deliver as the Filipinos go up against a new-look New Zealand side powered by high-scoring guards Izayah Le’afa and Corey Webster, as well as former PBA import Tom Vodanovich.
Le’afa and Webster did not see action for the Tall Blacks in the opening window last February as they were then led by another ex-PBA reinforcement Ethan Rusbatch.
Curiously, Rusbatch — who averaged a team-best 16.5 points in the Kiwis’ first two matches — is not included in their 13-man pool for the second window.
Game time is 7:30 pm. – Rappler.com
