WHAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN FOR GILAS TO ADVANCE

Following the stunning win by the 37th ranked Philippines over world No. 6 Latvia, the Olympic hopes are very much alive for the Filipinos as Gilas Pilipinas heads to its final game in Group A against Georgia on Thursday, 8:30 p.m. (Manila time) in the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament.

The Filipinos relied on their resolute defense and solid shooting to bring down the Latvians, 89-80, early Thursday morning in Riga, Latvia.

The historic victory marked the Philippines' first against a European team since the 1960 Rome Olympics, or back when the national team defeated Spain, 84-82.

In Group A, Latvia holds a 1-1 record after thrashing Georgia, 83-55, in its first game on Wednesday. It will advance to the semifinal round but its placing would depend on the outcome of the Philippines-Georgia game tonight.

The Philippines has a 1-0 record and a victory against Georgia would give the Filipinos the top spot in Group A.

And should this scenario happen, the Philippines will face the No. 2 team of Group B in the crossover semis.

The teams in Group B are Brazil (1-0), Cameroon (0-1) and Montenegro (1-1).

A loss by Gilas Pilipinas, however, will create a triple tie with Latvia and Georgia at 1-1, and as per FIBA rules, the final ranking for Group A will be determined through a points differential tiebreaker.

For the Philippines to advance, it should not lose to Georgia by more than 18 points.

If Gilas Pilipinas loses by 18 points or less, it will claim the number two spot and will advance in the crossover semis against the number one team in Group B.

A loss of 19 or more points would lead to automatic elimination for the Filipinos.

The two winners in the semifinals will clash for a spot in the 2024 Olympics.

2024-07-04T04:26:13Z dg43tfdfdgfd