GILAS Youth will be put to the test early after being drawn with powerhouse teams Spain, Lithuania and Puerto Rico in Group A of the 2024 Fiba U17 Basketball World Cup in Turkiye.
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Josh Reyes’ wards face a tall order as all three of Gilas’ groupmates had at least one podium finish in the last three editions of the tournament — world No. 2 Spain being the reigning runner-up, world No. 15 Puerto Rico bagging bronze in 2018 and a similar top-three placement for world No. 7 Lithuania in 2016.
READ: Kieffer Alas says Fiba U16 stint an eye-opener on PH gap from Asia powers
The country’s Under-17 nationals booked their spots in the global showpiece for only the third time since 2014 after a historic top four run in the 2023 Fiba Asia U16 Cup led by All-Tournament Team member Kieffer Alas.
A condensed four-group, 16-team field guarantees qualification for all squads to the competition's knockout stage.
From there, Group A and Group B teams will be matched with Group C and Group D sides, with the top-seeds in the group phase playing the fourth-seeds and the second-seeds taking on the third-seeds.
Such a tournament format could pave the way for a Philippines vs. USA matchup in as early as the Round of 16. The Americans have won all six previous editions of the global showpiece since 2010 without losing a single game and are now on the hunt for their seventh consecutive world championship.
Gilas Youth's final World Cup roster will soon be named ahead of the prestigious youth conclave from June 29 to July 7 in Istanbul.
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