The 27th FIBA Asia Championship on TV5

MANILA, Philippines - The road to the 2014 FIBA World Cup in Spain gets tougher as Gilas Pilipinas vies for one of the three berths in the ongoing FIBA Asia Championship.

Gilas Pilipinas, finishing on top of Group E, will face a tough assignment in the quarterfinals against a determined Kazakhstan, which placed fourth in Group F. The game will be aired live on TV5 starting tonight at 8. 

The strong second round play of Gilas against Japan, Qatar and Hong Kong catapulted the national squad to the No.1 spot in Group E. The hot shooting of Jeff Chan and Larry Fonacier enabled the team to dominate their opponents. The inside presence of Marcus Douthhit, Marc Pingris, Ranidel de Ocampo, and Japeth Aguilar has limited the scoring opportunities of opposing big men. The all-around play of guards Jayson Castro and Gabe Norwood has been the X-factor in the play of the Philippine squad.

Gilas Pilipinas and Kazakhstan played in a tune-up match two weeks ago prior to the start the FIBA Asia Championship, with the national squad winning 92-89. Kazakhstan has naturalized guard Jerry Johnson leading the charge but their tall players could be lethal as well.

The action continues tomorrow with the semifinal games to be played at 5:30 p.m. and at 10:30 p.m. The conclusion of the tournament on Sunday will have the battle for third at 5 p.m. and the exciting finals at 7:30 p.m.

Gilas Pilipinas is aiming to duplicate the feat achieved by the 1973 Philippine team and book a trip to Spain in 2014.

Catch all the FIBA Asia Championship games at the Mall of Asia Arena and the live broadcasts on TV5, AksyonTV, HYPER and Basketball TV, the host broadcaster of FIBA Asia 2013. FIBA Asia LIVE action is also available in high-definition to Cignal subscribers (Channel 199). 

Tickets to the FIBA Asia Championship are available at SM Tickets (www.smtickets.com).