Corey Webster (with ball) has tormented Gilas Pilipinas once before. —FIBA PHOTO

Gilas Pilipinas’ first stern test in the Fiba Asia Cup will come against New Zealand, a roster built with young talent peppered with veteran presence—just like how the Nationals have been assembled.

There will be plenty of names to take a closer look at heading into the Thursday duel at Mall of Asia Arena, but national coach Tim Cone believes that Corey Webster, the newly minted Tall Blacks captain, will be the visitors’ main guy.

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“Well, you know, Webster’s there—the NBA guy. He’s going to be a guy that we’re going to have to be attentive to as he can change a game. When he gets hot, he gets rolling,” he said.

Webster, now 35, has seen 97 Fiba games for the Kiwis. And he is no stranger to the Philippines’ style of play and its crowd, having battled against Gilas in the 2016 Olympic Qualifiers held in Manila.

A well-traveled guard who had stints with the New Orleans Pelicans and Dallas Mavericks, Webster averaged 21.7 points in that tournament, which meant to complete the field for the Rio Olympics. He put up 23 points in an 89-80 win over the Philippine squad, then bannered by Andray Blatche.

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He was also big during the 2019 Fiba World Cup, his 22.8-point average the third-finest in the entire showcase.

17-year-old Kiwi

“They turn out in their tens of thousands and pack their arenas and love their national team,” he said of the Filipinos, whom he will be reacquainted with at 7:30 p.m. at Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.

“Playing in Manila is something that not too many players get to experience, it is always amazing and to have a game over there in this window is a great experience for any player—I know it will be electric,” he added in an interview published in the Tall Blacks’ website.

Webster won’t be the only name that merits attention heading into Gilas’ home stand. New Zealand coach Judd Flavell himself was letting people in on the secret.

“This is an exciting group—a young group playing at a high level for their Australian clubs. Look at Tyrell (Harrison), Sam Mennenga, Sam Waardenburg, Flynn (Cameron), Izayah (Le’afa), Max (Darling), Hyrum (Harris)—all in the early-to-mid-20s and all playing vital roles at very good clubs in a very good league that is gaining worldwide attention,” he said.

Waardenburg is only 17 years old, but the 6-foot-10 big man has already played for New Zealand in the last OQT held in Greece. He is expected to form a ferocious front line with the 7-foot Harrison.

Mennenga, 22, was also a part of that squad that stunned higher-ranked Croatia in the Greek city of Piraeus, and he could very well backstop Tom Vodanovich in the paint, who knows a thing or two about Philippine basketball after a stint with Converge.

Darling and Harris were part of the first window squad that beat Chinese Taipei and Hong Kong by an average of 29.5 points.

“Add that experience of Corey … and I think we have a fantastic blend in this group and for these two testing games,” Flavell said.

Cone, for his part, has been bullish on Gilas’ chances against its old tormentor. And he has the 2-0 start to thank for that.

“You know, we have integrated this program—this lineup—already through the two windows that we have already played. So we’re hoping to reap the benefits of that going into this next tournament,” he said. INQ