The Gilas Pilipinas national men’s basketball team will rely on new faces to compensate for its lack in size on Friday at the start of FIBA Basketball World Cup Asian qualifiers’ sixth window at the Philippine Arena.
Top Gilas big men Kai Sotto, Japeth Aguilar and Carl Tamayo will be unavailable during Gilas’ coming games against Lebanon on Friday at 6 p.m. and against Jordan on Monday, leaving June Mar Fajardo as the team’s only legitimate center.
Big man Kevin Quiambao is expected to step up, with 6’5” naturalized player Justin Brownlee and 18-year-old Mason Amos, a shooter.
Team captain Amir Saoud will lead the Lebanon squad, which will also miss key players, led by Fiba Asia Cup MVP Wael Arakji.
Lebanon will also be without Ali Haidar, who averaged 13.4 points a game for the team, second behind Arakji with 16.8 points.
Haidar is the top rebounder of the Cedars during the qualifiers with 6.4 per contest.
Lebanon won over the Philippines, 85-81, during the August window in Beirut.
The Cedars will have Sergio El Darwich, Hayk Gyokchyan, Gerard Hadidian, Jean Marc Jarrouj, Jad Khalil, Marc Khoueiry, Ali Mansour, Ali Mezher, Naim Rabay, Gabriel Salibi, and Karim Zeinoun.