With Gilas Pilipinas Under-23 splitting its roster between the FIBA 3×3 Under-23 World Cup and the 20th Asian Games, the national program has called up several reinforcements for both competitions.
Malcolm Tyler and Louna Ozar have been added to the squads for the World Cup, which runs from Wednesday to Sunday in Wuhan, China.
Tyler, a 6-foot-10 big man currently serving his residency at Ateneo, received his first national team call-up. He will join Cabs Cabonilas, Earl Medina, and Jedric Daa — the trio that formed part of the team that won the SEA Conference of the Nations League.
(C) FIBA.basketball
Meanwhile, Ozar will transition to the 3×3 squad after being part of the 5-on-5 team during the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup Pre-Qualifying OQT.
She will team up with Marielle Vingno, Jam Meniano, and Elaine Patio, all of whom represented Gilas Girls in the Nations League.
Gilas Boys will face New Zealand and Spain on Wednesday before taking on Egypt and Latvia on Friday in the pool phase.
The girls’ team, meanwhile, will begin its campaign on Tuesday against France and Italy, followed by matchups against Egypt and China on Thursday.
(C) FIBA 3×3
For the Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan, Nic Cabañero, Luis Pablo, Doy Dungo, and Koji Buenaflor will comprise the boys’ team. Meanwhile, Kacey Dela Rosa, Kennan Ka, Amyah Espanol, and Victoria Pasilang will form a loaded girls’ squad.
Gilas Boys are grouped with Mongolia, Kazakhstan, and Sri Lanka, while the girls’ team is slotted into a pool with Mongolia, Malaysia, and Macau.
