Gilas Pilipinas looks to reach the FIBA Asia Cup semifinals for the first time in a decade as it battles Australia at the King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on Wednesday, August 13.
It will be a tall order for the Philippines, considering the two-time defending champion Boomers have not lost in Asia Cup history and swept the group stage with a staggering winning margin of 25.7 points.
The Filipinos need to be at their sharpest to pull off a major upset, and they hope to get stellar performances from the trio of Justin Brownlee, AJ Edu, and Kevin Quiambao, who showed the way in a 95-88 overtime win over Saudi Arabia.
Brownlee finished with 29 points, 5 assists, and 4 rebounds, AJ Edu put up 17 points, 12 rebounds, and 4 assists, while Quiambao chipped in 17 points, 3 assists, and 3 steals as the Philippines earned its place in the quarterfinals.
The last time Gilas Pilipinas made it as far as the semifinals in the Asia Cup was in the 2015 tournament, where it fell short of the crown after losing to China in the championship game.
A pair of early exits followed in the next two editions as the Philippines finished seventh in 2017 and ninth in 2022, with Australia capturing back-to-back titles without dropping a single game.
The clash between the Filipinos and the Aussies marks their first meeting since the two teams figured in an infamous brawl in 2018 in a FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers game at the Philippine Arena in Bulacan.
June Mar Fajardo and Japeth Aguilar are the only holdovers from that game, which Australia won convincingly, 89-53, as the Philippines lost by default after nine of its players got ejected and two fouled out.
The Boomers parade a completely retooled roster led by Jaylin Galloway, who paces the team in scoring with 18.0 points to go with 3.0 rebounds and 2.3 steals, and former NBA player Jack McVeigh, who averages 13.7 points.
Game time is 7 pm.
