The Philippines men's national basketball team is currently competing in the 2027 FIBA World Cup Qualifiers as it seeks to qualify for the 2027 FIBA World Cup which will be hosted by Qatar from August 27 to September 12, 2027. The Philippines was drawn into Group A alongside Australia, New Zealand, and Guam in the first round, before advancing to the second round and joining Group E with Australia, Iran, Jordan, New Zealand, and Syria.
The Philippines is seeking its fourth consecutive appearance in the FIBA Basketball World Cup, following its participation in the 2014, 2019, and 2023 editions.
Background Following the team's 24th place finish in the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup, the Philippines continued its international campaign under head coach Tim Cone, who took over as head coach in September 2023. Shortly after the World Cup, Cone led the Philippines a gold medal at the 2022 Asian Games after defeating Jordan 70–60 in the final to win the country's first men's basketball gold medal at the Asian Games since 1962.
The team also participated in the 2024 FIBA Men's Olympic Qualifying Tournament, where it defeated Latvia 89–80 in the opening game, marking its first victory over a European national team in an official FIBA tournament in 64 years. The Philippines subsequently lost to Georgia and Brazil, falling short of qualification for the 2024 Summer Olympics.
At the subsequent 2025 FIBA Asia Cup, the Philippines reached the quarterfinals before being eliminated by Australia, 84–60.
First round
The Philippines was drawn into Group A of the first round of the Asian qualifiers, alongside Australia, New Zealand, and Guam. The team played six games in total, facing each opponent twice. Head coach Tim Cone acknowledged the difficulty of the group before the qualifiers, stating, “We know it's going to be tough, but we look forward to it. Tough challenges lie ahead.” The Philippines finished third in the group with two wins and four losses, advancing to the second round alongside Australia and New Zealand.
Game 1: Guam This was the first competitive game between Guam and the Philippines.
The Philippines opened their 2027 FIBA Basketball World Cup Asian Qualifiers campaign with an 87–46 victory over Guam. The two teams were tied at 17–17 after the first quarter, with Guam led by Filipino-Guamanian Jericho Cruz, who scored 13 points in the opening period. The Philippines then pulled away in the second quarter, outscoring Guam 23–12 to take a 40–29 halftime lead. The Philippines continued to dominate after the break, limiting Guam to seven points in the third quarter while scoring 24 of its own, to eventually take the 41-point victory. Cruz finished as Guam's leading scorer with 17 points, along with two rebounds and two assists.
Justin Brownlee led the team with 22 points, while Dwight Ramos added 10. June Mar Fajardo and Quentin Millora-Brown each grabbed 10 rebounds, with the Philippines recording 61 rebounds in the game, setting a new Asian Qualifiers record. Guam Statistics Philippines 12/36 (33%) 2-pt field goals 31/61 (51%) 5/34 (15%) 3-pt field goals 4/16 (25%) 7/8 (88%) Free throws 13/17 (77%) 13 Offensive rebounds 20 23 Defensive rebounds 41 37 Total rebounds 61 7 Assists 22 15 Turnovers 10 8 Steals 9 7 Blocks 10 16 Fouls 11
Game 2: Guam This was the second competitive guam between Guam and the Philippines, with the latter winning the first 3 days prior by 41 points.
The Philippines won their second game of thir qualifier campaign after defeating Guam 95–71 to complete a sweep of the first qualifying window. The Philippines started strongly, building a 32–15 lead after the first quarter and extending it to 50–36 at halftime. Guam mounted a comeback in the third quarter behind Jericho Cruz, who led a 24–6 run that cut the Philippines' lead to nine points at 53–44. The Philippines responded with a 7–1 run to restore control and entered the fourth quarter leading 72–55 before eventually pulling away for the 24-point victory. Cruz finished with 27 points for Guam, while Justin Brownlee led the Philippines with 20 points, five rebounds, and seven assists.
The game also marked the final appearance of Japeth Aguilar for the Philippines, as he retired from international basketball after 16 years with the national team. Aguilar, who had represented the Philippines at the 2014, 2019, and 2023 FIBA World Cups, finished the game with three points and a rebound.
Philippines Statistics Guam 24/40 (60%) 2-pt field goals 12/33 (36%) 6/19 (32%) 3-pt field goals 11/39 (28%) 29/35 (83%) Free throws 14/22 (64%) 11 Offensive rebounds 17 34 Defensive rebounds 19 45 Total rebounds 36 27 Assists 8 19 Turnovers 16 7 Steals 6 4 Blocks 2 20 Fouls 23
Game 3: New Zealand This was the ninth competitive meeting between New Zealand and the Philippines, with the Tall Blacks having won the previous two encounters. The two teams last met in the group stage of the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup, where New Zealand won by eight points, 94–86.
The Philippines suffered their first loss to New Zealand, 66–69. The game was closely contested throughout its duration, with both teams tied at 37–37 at halftime. The Philippines briefly took the lead early in the third quarter before New Zealand responded with a 20–5 run to take a 57–46 lead entering the fourth. The Philippines mounted a late comeback, cutting the deficit to two points with less than a minute remaining, but New Zealand held on after the Philippines missed a potential game-tying three-pointer at the buzzer. Dwight Ramos led the Philippines with 16 points, while AJ Edu recorded 11 rebounds.
Head coach Tim Cone acknowledged the team's strong comeback but remained disappointed with the result, saying, “We're not gonna take pride in almost winning. We're here to win and we didn't do that.”
Philippines Statistics New Zealand 19/43 (44%) 2-pt field goals 15/37 (41%) 7/37 (19%) 3-pt field goals 9/30 (30%) 7/13 (54%) Free throws 12/24 (50%) 15 Offensive rebounds 15 34 Defensive rebounds 38 49 Total rebounds 53 16 Assists 20 11 Turnovers 18 9 Steals 5 5 Blocks 3 21 Fouls 20
Game 4: Australia This was the fourth competitive game between Australia and the Philippines, with the Boomers having won all previous three. The two teams last met on the quarterfinals of the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup where Australia won by 24 points, 84–60. The Philippines had yet to defeat Australia in competitive play, losing the previous three meetings by an average margin of 25.3 points.
The Philippines suffered their second consecutive loss in their campaign after falling to Australia by 27 points, 66–93, in front of 17,301 home fans. The game remained closely contested in the first half, with Australia holding only a five-point lead at halftime, 38–33. Australia then broke the game open in the third quarter, outscoring the Philippines 30–20 and extending its lead to 68–53 before pulling further away in the final period.
Justin Brownlee led the Philippines with 20 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, while Quentin Millora-Brown added 11 points and seven rebounds. Australia's Elijah Pepper led all scorers with 28 points and seven rebounds. This loss left the Philippines with a 2–2 record in Group A, with the team having already secured qualification to the second round of the qualifiers.
Philippines Statistics Australia 13/33 (39%) 2-pt field goals 20/41 (49%) 9/31 (29%) 3-pt field goals 15/42 (36%) 13/16 (81%) Free throws 8/9 (89%) 10 Offensive rebounds 18 29 Defensive rebounds 32 39 Total rebounds 50 19 Assists 21 12 Turnovers 5 4 Steals 6 3 Blocks 3 10 Fouls 13
Game 5: New Zealand This was the tenth competitive meeting between New Zealand and the Philippines, with the Tall Blacks having won the previous three encounters. The two teams last met in the second window of the Asian Qualifiers where New Zealand won the closely contested game, 69–66.
The Philippines suffered their third consecutive loss after falling to New Zealand 102–106 in double overtime. The game was closely contested throughout, with 13 lead changes and 13 ties. New Zealand led 44–39 at halftime, but the Philippines rallied in the third quarter to take a 64–63 lead heading into the final period. Juan Gomez de Liaño hit a three-pointer with 11.9 seconds remaining in regulation to tie the game at 83–83 and force overtime, before hitting another three with 8.3 seconds left in the first overtime to put the Philippines ahead 93–91 but New Zealand's Tai Webster answered to tie the game and force a second overtime. The Philippines later built a 100–96 lead in the second overtime, but New Zealand rallied behind Reuben Te Rangi and Sam Mennenga, who hit the go-ahead basket with 52.2 seconds remaining. Kevin Quiambao briefly tied the game again, but New Zealand closed with a 10–2 run to win 106–102.
New Zealand Statistics Philippines 25/48 (52%) 2-pt field goals 26/45 (58%) 10/34 (29%) 3-pt field goals 12/35 (34%) 26/35 (74%) Free throws 14/22 (64%) 19 Offensive rebounds 14 28 Defensive rebounds 31 47 Total rebounds 45 19 Assists 26 16 Turnovers 20 12 Steals 7 4 Blocks 5 23 Fouls 27
Game 6: Australia This was the fifth competitive game between Australia and the Philippines, with the Boomers having won all previous four. The two teams last met in the second window of the Asian Qualifiers where Australia won by 27 points, 93–66. The Philippines had yet to defeat Australia in competitive play, losing all their meetings by an average margin of 25.7 points.
The Philippines suffered their fourth consecutive loss after falling to Australia 49–92 to close the first round. Playing without naturalized player Justine Bronwlee, who was ruled out due to injuries, the Philippines initially kept pace with Australia after an 8–8 tie in the opening minutes, with Kevin Quiambao leading the charge with two early three-pointers. Australia then responded with a 16–0 run to take a 24–8 lead, with Bryce Cotton scoring 13 points in the first quarter, including three three-pointers, to eventually end the first quarter with a 33–14 lead. The Philippines responded in the second quarter, outscoring Australia 13–8 to cut the deficit to 14 points at halftime, 41–27. However, Australia dominated the second half, outscoring the Philippines 51–22 to pull away for the 43-point victory.
The Philippines' 49 points marked its lowest-scoring performance in the FIBA Asian Qualifiers, while the 43-point defeat was its largest margin of defeat in the campaign. Dwight Ramos led the scoring with nine points, while June Mar Fajardo and Kevin Quiambao added eight each.
With this result, the Philippines finished the first round in third place in Group A with a 2–4 record, carrying that record into the second round, where they will go against Iran, Jordan, and Syria twice. Head coach Tim Cone acknowledged the team's shortcomings after the defeat, saying, “We only competed in stretches and it’s not good enough against a high quality team like this.”
New Zealand Statistics Philippines 21/37 (57%) 2-pt field goals 14/40 (35%) 11/43 (26%) 3-pt field goals 4/24 (17%) 17/24 (71%) Free throws 9/12 (75%) 21 Offensive rebounds 13 32 Defensive rebounds 31 53 Total rebounds 44 21 Assists 11 8 Turnovers 19 12 Steals 3 4 Blocks 4 17 Fouls 23
Second round
The Philippines advanced to the second round and was drawn into Group E alongside fellow Group A qualifiers Australia and New Zealand, as well as Iran, Jordan, and Syria from Group C. All results from the first round were carried over into the second round, leaving the Philippines with a 2–4 record entering the next phase. Each team will play six additional games against the three teams from the other first-round group.