Just like its counterpart Gilas Pilipinas, young Philippine national basketball squad is also set to face tough opponents in the preliminary round of its own FIBA Asia Championship this year after the country’s under-17 team was bracketed along with other strong teams in the 16-team field competition.
Photo credit: FIBA Asia/Milad Payami
The Filipino youngsters ended up in Group A, which being comprised by powerhouse USA, Greece and Angola after the draw happened on Wednesday (Thursday Philippine Time), at Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
The Jamike Jarin-mentored squad had qualified in the tournament following a runner-up finish in the last year’s FIBA Asia Under-16 Championship in Tehran, Iran.
The third staging of the world championship will be held on August 8-16 in Dubai. The tournament will take place in Al Wasl, Al Ahli and the Hamdan Sports Complex.
The FIBA U17 World Championship was first staged in Hamburg, Germany in 2010 followed by the second edition held two years later in Kaunas, Lithuania.
The USA U-17 squad have won the 2010 and 2012 edition of the game which featured the 12 best national teams in the world from across FIBA’s five continental zones.
Here’s the complete result of the draw:
- Group B — Japan, France, Canada, Australia
- Group C — Puerto Rico, United Arab Emirates, Italy, Spain
- Group D — Argentina, Serbia, China, Egypt