GILAS PILIPINAS : 12 MAN LINE UP FOR 2019 WORLD CUP QUALIFIER VS JAPAN REVEALED

The 12 man line up of Gilas Pilipinas that will go up against Japan for the 1st game of the 2019 FIBA World Cup qualifier was announced this morning by Coach Chot Reyes via a live video streamed in the Kwentong Gilas Facebook page.

The 12 men who will be playing tomorrow are:

Jayson Castro
Kevin Alas
Kiefer Ravena
Roger Pogoy
Matthew Wright
Allein Maliksi
Calvin Abueva
Gabe Norwood
Troy Rosario
Japeth Aguilar
June Mar Fajardo
Andray Blatche

Here is the video posted in Facebook:

Gilas Cadets Mac Belo and Carl Bryan Cruz and Raymond Almazan will sit out in tomorrow's game.

The line up for Monday's game vs Chinese Taipei in Manila can still change depending on the needs of the team.

Goodluck Gilas!

pilipinas wins most valuable fan in the 2014 fiba world cup

despite going home after the group stages, the filipino fans are still declared the best fans in the recently concluded 2014 fiba world cup. this is based on the online games and votings and the social media buzz generated by the fans in support of their national team with the hashtag: #spain2014

here is a short video played during the halftime of the championship game between usa and serbia, paying homage to the filipino fans:

congrats pilipinas!

2014 fiba world cup: gilas pilipinas versus argentina

gilas pilipinas suffered another heartbreaking loss, now in the hands of the world's number 3 team - argentina, 81-85.

the philippines actually started strong, leading in the first quarter up to the start of the 2nd quarter. argentina then held its ground and lead as much as 15 points early in the fourth quarter. the filipinos did not give up and eventually caught up and was down by only 2 points during the last minute of the game. unfortunately, several missed shots and errors later, argentina escaped with the win.

ranidel de ocampo posted 18 points, leading the team but it was the heroics of jimmy alapag that kept us in the game. his leadership in the court is unmatched and he delivered 5 crucial 3 point shots in the second half. gabe norwood also showed his great defense and got two magnificent dunk shots, one even on the face of argentina's nba veteran, luis scola.

here are the highlights of the game:

gilas needs to win both of its final two assignments in the group round. it will face puerto rico on september 3 7:30pm and senegal on september 4 8pm (manila time).

we still have hope to advance to thr round of 16. let us all pray for gilas pilipinas. laban pilipinas!

video is from fiba's youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJLRmewbkeY&list=UUtInrnU3QbWqFGsdKT1GZtg

2014 fiba world championship: gilas pilipinas versus croatia

having been absent in the international basketball scene for almost 4 decades, filipino fans started the gilas pilipinas campaign with modest expectations but high hopes. making it to the world cup is an achievement itself and seeing the local PBA heroes side by side with the world's best is simply unbelievable.

but nobody expected what happened in their first game versus croatia...

croatia, who is ranked number 16 in the world, is expected to top the group b of the group stage. in fact, some websites bpredicted at least a 31 point victory over the philippines. but with pure heart and guts, the gilas pilipinas forced the game into overtime at 71-all after 4 quarters before eventually losing after the 5 minute additional time, at 81-79.

nobody expected this to be this close, i think this is the biggest surprise of day 1. gilas pilipinas made a statement last night that they might have been a virtual unknown entering the  tournament but they will fight with all heart. that was really an impressive debut by the philippines.

here are the game highlights from the fiba youtube channel:

philippines will be going against greece tomorrow early morning at 2am, then argentina at 11pm (manila time).

video is from the fiba youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xOwuJtXXe04&list=PLCXERy73Oiz_dZlx-PgDDaW7393y6ngL8

official song of the 2014 fiba world cup - sube la copa

here is the official video of the official song of the 2014 fiba world cup; sube la copa by huecco:

the video features gabe norwood, japhet aguilar and ranidel de ocampo of gilas pilipinas.

2 days to go before the return of the philippines to the world basketball scene! laban pilipinas!

video is from huecco's youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KP6g7GJdPhk