Gilas Pilipinas will play the Macau Bears in a warm-up game ahead of the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup

The Philippines men’s national basketball team is set to be in action very soon, as they will participate in the upcoming 2025 FIBA Asia Cup, scheduled to take place in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia next month.

The Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) is doing everything it can to ensure that Gilas Pilipinas is in the best possible shape for the tournament. SBP President Al Panlilio confirmed that the national team will face the Macau Bears in a tune-up game on July 28 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum as part of their preparations for the FIBA Asia Cup.

“Playing tune-up games before Gilas dives into the FIBA Asia Cup will only help the team. While the team gets good competition, it’s also an opportunity for our Gilas fans to band together and send their team off before they fly out to Saudi Arabia. It’s a short preparation window, as many of our players saw action in the semifinals of the Philippine Cup, which was another reason why the SBP wanted Gilas to have a tune-up game here,” Panlilio said in a statement.

LABAN, PILIPINAS!

Makakaharap ng Gilas Pilipinas ang Macau Black Bears para sa isang tune-up match sa Smart Araneta Coliseum sa July 28.

Ito’y bilang paghahanda bago ang kanilang FIBA Asia Cup 2025 stint sa Saudi Arabia.

Nakatakda namang makalaban ng Gilas Pilipinas ang… pic.twitter.com/zyTgqcaQ5H

— News5 (@News5PH) July 2, 2025

The Macau Bears are not new to facing national teams. The team—formerly known as Chong Son Kung Fu—stunned the basketball world when they defeated the Chinese national team 83–79 in a friendly last year in Kushan, China. They are a team not to be taken lightly, having competed in the ASEAN Basketball League, and currently playing in the East Asia Super League (EASL) and The Asian Tournament.

“They beat the Chinese national team. They’re really strong. They’ve got good imports. It could be a very interesting friendly for us,” said Gilas head coach Tim Cone.

Notably, this is not the first time Gilas has played a tune-up game ahead of an international tournament. They also faced the Taiwan Mustangs last year prior to the Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Riga, Latvia.

Gilas has been drawn into Group D of the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup alongside Iraq, New Zealand, and Chinese Taipei. They will open their campaign against Chinese Taipei on August 6 and are expected to depart for Jeddah at the end of July or the first week of August.

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