Cone, Gilas in Game 7 mode going into road games vs New Zealand, Australia

MANILA, Philippines – It’s like playing a Game 7 from here on out for Gilas Pilipinas. 

That’s according to head coach Tim Cone as the Philippines seeks to win at least one of its two road games against New Zealand and Australia in the third window of the FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifier. 

Gilas battles New Zealand in Auckland on Friday, July 3, before it travels to Perth where it tangles with Australia on Monday, July 6. 

Although the Filipinos are already through to the second round with a 2-2 record in Group A, the third-window games have serious implications on their chances of earning a spot in the World Cup to be hosted by Qatar in 2027. 

The top three teams from Group A and Group C — composed of Jordan, Iran, Syria, and Iraq — will cross over in the second round, where only the top three teams and the best fourth-placed team from the two newly formed groups will qualify for the World Cup. 

“Right now, if we don’t win one of these next two games, then we’re going to have a very small margin of error as we move forward into the next round, almost like we’re going to have to sweep the next round. That’s really difficult with high quality teams like Iran and Jordan,” said Cone.

“So it would really help us out if we can win one of these two games and that would give us more margin of error as we move forward into the next round.”

The odds are stacked against the Philippines given its history with New Zealand and Australia.

Since it beat New Zealand for the first time in FIBA play in 2024, Gilas has lost three straight games to the Tall Blacks, who improved to 7-1 in their head-to-head matchup.

Australia owns a similar 7-1 record against the Philippines, dealing the Filipinos a 93-66 beating in their most recent clash in March. 

But Cone trusts his wards to show some resistance, especially since the team got ample time to gear up for the third window following a four-day training camp in Brisbane, Australia, and dominant wins in a pair of tuneup games against squads which compete in New Zealand’s National Basketball League.

Gilas crushed the Manawatu Jets, 92-61, then clobbered the Franklin Bulls, 94-66. 

“We know it’s going to be tough. We’re looking forward to it. We’ve been a team that’s pulled surprises before. I’m not going to be surprised if we pull a surprise,” said Cone. 

“We’re in a tough bracket with Australia and New Zealand. It’s really tough. They’re always the two best in Asia. They’re not even from Asia, they’re from Oceania. But we got put into it so we just got to deal with it. If we can steal one game, that would be huge going into the next round. That’s really the plan.” 

And Cone hopes their preparation would be enough to make up for key personnel absences, with the team missing 7-foot-3 Kai Sotto and 6-foot-10 Quentin Millora-Brown.

To make up for its lack of size, Gilas brought in Mike Phillips, who debuts for the Philippines in FIBA play, and Justine Baltazar and Troy Rosario, who return to the national team roster for the first time in years. 

Completing the third-window lineup are Justin Brownlee, Dwight Ramos, Kevin Quiambao, June Mar Fajardo, AJ Edu, Carl Tamayo, Juan Gomez de Liaño, RJ Abarrientos, and Chris Newsome.

“Every game for Gilas is a championship game. It’s a Game 7. We just got to be prepared the best we can. I always say a prepared team is a confident team. If we feel like we’re prepared and ready to go, then we’re going to be confident and that will show in our game,” Cone said. – Rappler.com