ASIAN Games champion South Korea is one of the teams that is standing in the way of Gilas Pilipinas in its bid to make it to the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2027.
The Hyunjung Lee-led squad beat host Japan, 67-57, last September 20 to pocket the gold medal and end a 12-year title drought in the Asiad.
READ Gilas gets smashed by Korea national team again in Suwon tune-ups
The core of the squad came from the August window of the FIBA Basketball World Cup Asian Qualifiers, as eager as Gilas to make it to Qatar 2027.
After four windows of the Asian qualifiers, South Korea is in the bubble for those World Cup slots for being at fourth place in Group F with a 4-4 win-loss record.
Seven slots are available for the Asia/Oceania zone where the best three teams from each of the two groups and the top fourth placer qualify in the World Cup. Qatar has an automatic berth, regardless of where it finishes in qualifiers.
A look at the standings shows that Jordan is leading among the best fourth-placers with a 5-3 win-loss record in Group E. It actually has a similar win-loss record as Iran but Team Melli, which captured the Asian Games bronze, has the better points differential than Jordan in their head-to-head match-ups.
Standings after August window:
Group E
Australia 8-0
New Zealand 6-2
Iran 5-3
Jordan 5-3
Philippines 4-4
Syria 2-6
Group F
Japan 6-2
Lebanon 6-2
China 5-3
Korea 4-4
Qatar 4-4
Saudi Arabia 3-5
Chasing Jordan for that best fourth-place spot are the Philippines and South Korea, both with 4-4 win-loss records. Gilas keeps a better ranking due to its +1 point difference in their games, compared to Korea’s -5. Being in separate groups, the Philippines and Korea won't be facing each other in the qualifiers.
But don’t count Korea out as its Asian Games win could provide the much-needed boost for its World Cup qualifying campaign. Korea plays on the road during the November window against Qatar in Doha on the 26th and Saudi Arabia in Jeddah on the 29th.
Gilas will also play crucial games in the November window against Syria on November 27 and Iran on November 29, both games to be played in Seremban, Malaysia.
So aside from its group mate Jordan, Gilas must also watch out for the results of Korea's games to know where it stands in their quest for that World Cup berth.
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