Gilas wary of taller Indians

MANILA, Philippines – Gilas Pilipinas is not expecting a walk in the park in spite of its home court advantage and a higher ranking when it troops into action against India in the 2023 FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Ranked 33rd in the FIBA World rankings plus the perks of having the Filipino fans for the first time in two years, Gilas will still be in a tough outing against the taller and more cohesive Indian squad according to coach Chot Reyes.

“No. 1 is they have size. They're a tall team,” said Reyes of India, No. 80 in the world but with an average height of 6-foot-6.

“They've been together for a decade already. You can imagine the kind of chemistry and familiarity they've built with each other. That alone is a cause for us to make sure that it will take our best to be able to compete against them,” he added.

Gilas, on the other hand, is ushering a new start following a coaching change and roster overhaul only this month.

Add that to India’s revenge bid after bowing to New Zealand in a wire-to-wire 101-46 loss last night for the lone game opener of the Group A games, and Gilas has an even bigger mountain to scale, warned Reyes.

“We’re certain that they’re going to be well-coached and well-prepared. That's the thing I told our team, we have to completely be ready for a very tough team against India,” he added.

Gilas is yet to name its final 12-man cast from the 15-strong pool it brought to the FIBA bubble but it is expected to be bannered by the TNT Tropang Giga core and naturalized player Ange Kouame.

TNT players that are in the pool are Roger Pogoy, Poy Erram, Troy Rosario, Kelly Williams, Gab Banal and Kib Montalbo with Robert Bolick, Thirdy Ravena, Dwight Ramos, Juan Gomez de Liaño, Lebron Lopez, Will Navarro, Jaydee Tungcab and Tzaddy Rangel.