Aussies gear up for PHL five

TEAM Australia will not lower its guards against the Philippines, which the Aussies will face in the second window of the International Basketball Federation (Fiba) World Cup Asian Qualifiers later this month.

Ranked 10th in the world, Australia have restocked its pool to a mean 24-man team and the Boomers are taking no chances for the 31st-ranked Gilas.

The match is set February 22 in Melbourne and Australia national team Head Coach Andrej Lemanis added National Basketball League (NBL) veterans and young guns to the pool.

Lemanis considers shuffling players between their matches against the Filipinos, who they play first, and Chines Taipei on February 25.

The Aussies also have the luxury of focusing on the tournament as its NBL takes a break for 10 days to give way to the Asian Qualifiers of the 2019 World Cup in China.

Among the players that were included to the team are veterans David Anderesen, Alex Loughton, Adam Gibson and rookie Isaac Humphries.

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