Gilas Pilipinas will continue the journey towards the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup with the November window of the first round. Here's the schedule, where to watch, and other things you need to know.
The Philippine men's national basketball team returns to action this month with the November window of the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers.
Gilas Pilipinas currently shares identical 2-0 records with New Zealand in Group B. In this November 2024 window, the Philippines will take on New Zealand and Hong Kong right here at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
There will be a final window on February 25 against Chinese Taipei and New Zealand.
The top two teams in each group get the ticket to the FIBA Asia Cup in Saudi Arabia. Meanwhile, the six third-placed teams will play for the last four slots via a final qualifying tournament.
In Window 2, the Philippines will qualify for the FIBA Asia Cup with two wins (New Zealand and Hong Kong) OR if they beat Hong Kong and New Zealand gets a couple of victories.
The same scenario applies for the Tall Blacks. They will qualify with two wins OR if they beat Chinese Taipei and the Philippines gets two wins.
Here are the schedule of games, roster information, where to watch, and other stories you need to know.
SCHEDULE OF GAMES
November 21 | Thursday
- Philippines vs New Zealand
- 7:30 p.m. LIVE | One Sports, One Sports+, Pilipinas Live
- SM Mall of Asia Arena
November 24 | Sunday
- Philippines vs Hong Kong
- 7:30 p.m. LIVE | One Sports, One Sports+, Pilipinas Live
- SM Mall of Asia Arena
WHERE TO WATCH
-
Venue: SM Mall of Asia Arena | Website - https://smtickets.com/
- Free-to-air: One Sports | Cignal Ch. 6
- Cable: One Sports+ | Cignal Ch. 261 HD & Ch. 91 SD
- Streaming: Pilipinas Live | Download the app for mobile or check pilipinaslive.com for desktop.
PHILIPPINES (34)
Gilas Pilipinas needed a bit of time to adjust to Coach Tim Cone's system back in February, but they quickly got the win in the first window against Hong Kong and Chinese Taipei.
The roster is still mainly intact, though Japeth Aguilar, Mason Amos, and Ange Kouame will step up for Jamie Malonzo and the injured AJ Edu. Kai Sotto, who was in concussion protocol, is expected to participate in time for the Qualifiers.
[ALSO READ: Kai Sotto diagnosed with concussion from Koshigaya's win vs Yokohama]
Justin Brownlee is still expected to be the main man for Gilas, while Sotto could continue to lead in the rebounds department.
Final roster:
- Japeth Aguilar (Call-up)
- Mason Amos (Call-up)
- Justin Brownlee
- Junemar Fajardo
- Chris Newsome
- Calvin Oftana
- CJ Perez
- Kevin Quiambao
- Dwight Ramos
- Kai Sotto
- Carl Tamayo
- Scottie Thompson
Stories:
Previous results:
-
Philippines def. Hong Kong, 94-64
-
Philippines def. Chinese Taipei, 106-53
NEW ZEALAND (22)
Gilas Pilipinas has yet to win one against the Tall Blacks in four FIBA face-offs so far, so expect New Zealand to be the Philippines' biggest competition in Group B.
[ALSO READ: 5th time's the charm? Revisiting the encounters of Gilas Pilipinas and New Zealand in FIBA]
Still, Tim Cone is feeling optimistic about their chances against the Tall Blacks: "Just believe."
[ALSO READ: Tim Cone says Gilas has shot to score first win vs New Zealand]
There's plenty of familiar faces in the preliminary roster with Taylor Britt, Corey Webster, Tom Vodanovich, and Flynn Cameron.
Tyrell Harrison and Vodanovich will certainly be players to watch.
However, they will have a new coach in Judd Flavell--another member of the team which reached the semifinals of the 2002 FIBA Basketball World Cup.
Flavell will be taking over from Paul Henare and Pero Cameron. He's not a completely new face, having coached the junior program and served as an assistant coach to the Tall Blacks.
He also won the NBL title with the Auckland Pirates in 2012, the Southland Sharks in 2018, and the Canterbury Rams in 2023 and 2024.
Final roster:
- Taylor Britt
- Corey Webster
- Kaia Isaac
- Flynn Cameron
- Izayah Mauriohooho Le’afa
- Walter Brown
- Hyrum Harris
- Tom Vodanovich
- Oscar Goodman
- Max Darling
- Sam Mennenga
- Sam Waardenburg
- Tyrell Harrison
Previous results:
-
New Zealand def. Chinese Taipei, 89-69
-
New Zealand def. Hong Kong, 88-49
HONG KONG (117)
Hong Kong is looking for win number one in a bid to at least reach the final qualifying round.
While coach Chiu Wing Leung has yet to announce the preliminary roster for the November window, having Oliver Xu and Duncan Reid would provide efficiency and points for the squad.
Previous results:
-
Philippines def. Hong Kong, 94-64
-
New Zealand def. Hong Kong, 88-49