SMART Gilas Pilpinas had its final preparations in Manila on Monday evening at the Meralco Gym in Pasig City. They depart for Tokyo, Japan the next day for the opening of the FIBA World Cup 2019 Asian Qualifiers.
Andray Blatche, Jayson Castro, Gabe Norwood, June Mar Fajardo, Calvin Abueva, Troy Rosario, Japeth Aguilar, Allein Maliksi, Matthew Wright, Kiefer Ravena, Mac Belo, Roger Pogoy, and Carl Cruz all suited up in the session.
Raymond Almazan and Kevin Alas were also in attendance, but were seen on the sidelines clad in street clothes. Almazan is nursing a left ankle sprain he sustained from Sunday night’s practice.
The team will fly to Japan Tuesday, November 21, for the first window of the qualifiers, which will commence on Friday, November 24. SMART Gilas will next face Chinese Taipei three days later at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum.
