Gilas Pilipinas eyes redemption when it fields the men's and women's 3x3 teams in the FIBA 3x3 Asia Cup which kicks off on Wednesday, July 6 in Singapore.
After failing to defend their gold medals in the 31st Southeast Asian Games in Vietnam, both squads will be parading new faces in the five-day regional showpiece.
The Gilas 3x3 men’s team, after missing the podium in the SEA Games, went a major facelift and will be bannered by an entirely different roster, this time led by the core players of PBA 3x3 third conference champion TNT.
Almond Vosotros, the chosen team captain, will be joined by TNT teammates Lervin Flores and Samboy De Leon along with PBA 3x3 runner-up Joseph Eriobu of Purefoods while coach Lester Del Rosario of Pioneer Pro Tibay will serve as the head coach.
On the distaff side, Afril Bernardino, the only returning member of the Gilas 3x3 women’s bronze medal team in the SEA Games, will have Camille Clarin, Khate Castillo and Trish Guytingco in the new-look squad.
Both squads are out to reclaim the lost glory although it will be easier said than done as they will go through a qualifying draw to the tournament. Only 12 teams from will advance to the main draw where they will be grouped into four pools. The top two teams in each pool will advance to the playoffs.
The men’s team is pooled in Group C in the qualifying draw along with Indonesia and Lebanon while the women’s side is in Group B together with Jordan and SEA Games gold medalist Thailand.