Game Sunday
(Khanh Hoa Sports Center, Nha Trang)
8 p.m. — Philippines vs Saudi Arabia

NHA TRANG, Vietnam — As the Energen Pilipinas U-16 team plunged in the swimming pool of the Olympic Hotel for some breathing exercises, coach Olsen Racela knows that the level of competition in the FIBA Asia U-16 Championship has yet to pick up.

While the National cagers ripped Southeast Asian neighbors Indonesia and Vietnam by wide margins in the preliminaries, Racela knows that their first test of their preparedness to win this biennial cagefest will be the next two days, when they play Saudi Arabia Sunday and Japan Monday at the Khanh Hoa Sports Center here.

"Of course, 2-0 tayo but it's hard to gauge yung laro ng team with the level of competition na nilalaro natin," Racela said Saturday during the players' pool exercises prior to last night's match with Qatar.

The clash with Qatar, being played at presstime, kicked off the PH boys' second round campaign and a win would clinch them a spot in the knockout quarterfinals stage slated on Wednesday.

Good news for the PH squad, the left ankle of guard Kyles Lao has improved, two days after he got hurt in the 111-25 rout of Vietnam. Racela did not use Lao last night against Qatar and could likely sit anew against Qatar and could make his return against Japan.

Racela's other concern, a major one, however is whether playing weaker teams early, coupled with the title favorites he picked such as China, Korea, Lebanon and Iraq playing tougher teams early in the other group, would go to their disadvantage.

"Ang concern ko lang is mahina yung mga kalaban natin, unlike in the other group na ngayon pa lang mataas na yung level of play," Racela said. "But, it can work to our advantage also dahil nababatak na sila (opponents). I mean, we've been lucky the past few days with the draw and the withdrawal of Iran so hopefully madala natin yung luck sa quarters."

But before the Energen cagers think of the quarters, they will have to hurdle the Saudis, a team that has tall Al Thalabi Saif and guards like Musallam Abdullaah and Barnawi Raad, Sunday at 7 p.m. (8 p.m. Manila time) first before facing Japan Monday at the same time.

Racela was quite impressed with the Japanese team, whose speed, quickness and crisp passing ability plays a bit similar with the Philippine team.