MATTHEW Aquino will get his long-awaited chance to play in a Fiba competition, albeit for a different country as he was enlisted in Japan's 12-man roster for its game against Chinese Taipei on Saturday.
The Shinshu Brave Warriors center was included in coach Tom Hovasse's lineup as the Akatsuki Five continue their campaign in the 2023 Fiba World Cup Asian qualifiers.
Aquino set for Japan debut
Aquino will fight for minutes in the frontline with naturalized center Luke Evans and locals Avi Koki Schafer, Daichi Taniguchi, and Takatoshi Furukawa. Yuki Togashi will lead Japan, with Takumi Saito, Takuma Sato, Yudai Nishida, Ryo Terashima, Isaiah Murphy, and Keita Imamura complete the roster.
Japan currently holds a 0-2 card in Group B and will try to earn its first win at home of Chinese Taipei at Okinawa Arena.
Chinese Taipei earlier suffered a 98-61 beat down at the hands of Australia to drop to 0-1 in the bracket.
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