DIFFERENT ROUTES, SAME GOAL
THESE 16 teams took different courses from all corners of the continent before they got to Manila for the 27th FIBA Asia Championship.
Yet they all know the ultimate destination lies not in the Philippine capital city but in Spain, where the 17th FIBA Basketball World Cup has long been set.
And just like what most of the Asian participants have already gone through, the Manila stop will be one mad scramble, for only the top three teams advance to the world stage.
From such cities as Incheon, Manama, New Delhi, Medan and Tehran came the 14 other squads which join defending champion China, FIBA Asia Cup winner and outright qualifier Iran and host Philippines to do battle from Aug. 1 to 11.
Kazakhstan took the shortest route, easily hurdling Uzbekistan, 80-60, last May 7 to earn the lone berth from Central Asia.
India also had a relative shortcut, running roughshod over a three-team field that also included Afghanistan and Nepal last early June for the only slot from South Asia.
The others had to practically scrape their way through.
Even China, which won its 15th Asian title two years ago in Wuhan, participated in the East Asia championship, where a total of five slots to FIBA Asia were at stake.
Korea emerged unscathed from Group A and ditto for China in the three-team Group B.
The Koreans and Chinese arranged a title showdown by tripping Hong Kong and Japan, respectively, in the semifinals before the former won via a 79-68 count in the championship last May 21.
Also making it from East Asia were third placer Japan, Hong Kong and Chinese-Taipei, which caught the bus after beating Mongolia, 94-86, in their battle for fifth.
Bahrain’s capital city was the site of the 13th Gulf Championship, where the top three teams advanced to Manila.
Qatar became the lead qualifier from those among the Gulf States when it won all its four matches, capped by a 74-64 conquest of second placer Bahrain.
Saudi Arabia also made it through due to victories over United Arab Emirates and also-ran Oman.
It was also in February that the West Asian Championship was held, with Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq joining host Iran to determine who is regional champion and choose the two other teams going to the FIBA Asia.
The tournament was held from February 7 to February 9, 2013 at the Azadi Basketball Hall in Tehran, Iran.
The Iranians were supposed to have it easy and all indications pointed to such when it won by 38 over Jordan and 33 over Iraq in their first two outings.
The Lebanese had other plans, however, and stretched the hosts to the limit before fading in overtime and bowing, 100-86.
Still, Lebanon also made it through along with Jordan.
It was the same scratch-and-claw affair late last month in the final qualifying tournament in Medan, Indonesia, this time for the two remaining participants from Southeast Asia.
Thailand and Malaysia copped the two slots after each wound up with identical 2-1 slates.
But by virtue of their 73-63 victory over the Malaysians last June 23, the Thais bagged the regional crown and surfaced as lead qualifier from the region.
The contingents are expected to trickle in to Manila one after another later this month. But it is expected that most of their sights are on such other cities as Madrid, Barcelona, Seville, Granada, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and Bilbao, venues of the World Cup.
At the same time, expectedly running through their minds are the words: Next stop, Spain!
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