Batang Gilas to face Australia in FIBA Asia U-18 semis

The budding basketball rivalry between the Philippines and Australia will continue in the FIBA Under-18 Asian Championship semifinals in Thailand.

The U-18 Boomers defeated Japan, 88-52, on Thursday in their quarterfinal matchup to set up a showdown on Friday against Batang Gilas, which dispatched Bahrain, 67-52, to enter the tournament's final four.

The game comes a month after a wild brawl broke out between the senior teams of the two country's last month in the qualifiers for next year's FIBA Basketball World Cup, which has led to ejections for players involved and heavy sanctions for players and officials.

Both Australia and the Philippines have already punched a ticket to next year's FIBA Under-19 World Championship.

In the opposite side of the bracket, New Zealand awaits the winner of the day's game between China and South Korea for the other semifinals pairing. —JST, GMA News