Gilas Pilipinas battles Kazakhstan in crucial 2026 Asian Games match

Gilas Pilipinas will look to revive its title defense bid when it takes on Kazakhstan on Saturday in the 2026 Asian Games in Japan.

Tip-off is at 6 p.m. (Philippine time) at the Aichi International Arena in Aichi-Nagoya with the defending champions Gilas hoping to break through following an opening day loss to Bahrain on Friday.

Gilas Pilipinas endured a tough start to its bid for back-to-back Asian Games gold medals.

Bannered by a new-look all-PBA roster and without a naturalized import, the Filipinos made a gallant fourth-quarter comeback but ultimately fell short to absorb an 89-85 defeat at the hands of world No. 77 Bahrain.

Down for most of the game, Gilas rallied back and unleashed a 9-2 rampage capped by a Don Trollano triple to pull within four points in the final 11.2 seconds, 85-89. However, the comeback proved too late for the Philippines as Bahrain salvaged a four-point victory to stun the reigning champions.

Despite the loss, Gilas had plenty of positives to take away from the game.

For one, three Gilas players reached double figures with holdover Calvin Oftana erupting for a team-high 31 points while Adrian Nocum and Justine Baltazar had 14 and 10 markers each.

Gilas also held the edge in rebounds, 51-35, and assists, 26-23, against Bahrain. The Filipinos also had fewer turnovers than Bahrain, committing just eight against the foes' 10.

The national team will look to build on this against Kazakhstan, which is also eager to bounce back after losing in its opening game by sustaining a lopsided 99-61 loss to China on Friday.

Askar Maydekin and Daniil Severgin led the fight for Kazakhstan after finishing with 11 and 10 points, respectively.

The game is crucial for either team as only the top two teams per each group and the two best third-place finishers will qualify for the quarterfinals.

China and Bahrain currently lead Group C with identical 1-0 win-loss cards while the Philippines and Bahrain are both winless.

READ MORE | Gilas Pilipinas at the 2026 Asian Games men's basketball: Groups, format, schedule

—JKC, GMA News