Coming off two blowout wins over Hong Kong and Kuwait following a forgettable opening day match against Palestine, the Philippine men's basketball team will enter the second round skirmish in high spirits as they take on regional rival Japan on Sunday at 4:45 p.m in Changsha, China.
A much more focused Gilas Pilipinas team will kick off its second round campaign against a Japanese team that demonstrated significant improvement, particularly on the defensive, since losing to the Filipinos at the 2015 Jones Cup few weeks ago.
Led by former Phoenix Suns guard Yuta Tabuse and fleet-footed big man Joji Takeuchi, Japan will try to put more pressure on a Philippine squad that is still looking for identity almost halfway into the Rio Olympic qualifying tournament.
Tabuse, who locked horns with Filipino guards at the Jones Cup, believes the Filipinos are the favorites heading into Sunday's clash, primarily because of the presence of the 6-foot-10, NBA veteran Andray Blatche.
"Andray Blatche was not in the Jones Cup. They (the Filipinos) have got them now. They have become a lot better. We'll just try out best," said Japanese ace playmaker Yuta Tabuse via the Philippine Inquirer.
But before the Philippine-Japan battle, all eyes will be on the battle of heavyweight between Lebanon and South Korea at 2:30 p.m (GMT 8+). Both finishing their group stages campaign with a 2-1 record (1-1 carryover record), these two fancied basketball teams are expected to put everything on the line to keep them in the thick of things in a very deep Group F competition..
FIBA Asia 2015: Iran vs. Philippines Live Stream, Box Scores & Play-by-Play Updates - Click Here