MANILA, Philippines – Gilas Pilipinas will join Serbia, Italy, Angola, in the first round of the 2019 FIBA World Cup after the tournament’s groupings were determined in a draw on Saturday, March 16, in Shenzhen, China.

The Philippines got bunched in Group D and will play in Foshan, one of the 8 cities in China where the World Cup will be staged from August 31 to September 15. 

With the World Cup featuring a record 32 nations, the first round was divided into 8 groups of 4 with the top two teams from each group advancing to the second round. 

Ranked 31st by FIBA, it will be a tough climb for the Philippines with Serbia and Italy ranked being 4th and 13th in the world. Angola is the lowest-ranked team in Group D at 39th. 

Here are the complete groupings for the 2019 FIBA World Cup:

Group A 

1. Ivory Coast 

2. Poland

3. Venezuela 

4. China

Group B

1. Russia

2. Argentina 

3. Korea 

4. Nigeria

Group C

1. Spain 

2. Iran 

3. Puerto Rico 

4. Tunisia

Group D

1. Angola

2. PHILIPPINES

3. Italy 

4. Serbia 

Group E

1. Turkey 

2. Czech Republic 

3. USA

4. Japan

Group F

1. Greece 

2. New Zealand 

3. Brazil 

4. Montenegro

Group G

1. Dominican Republic 

2. France 

3. Germany

4. Jordan

Group H

1. Canada

2. Senegal

3. Lithuania 

4. Australia 

– Rappler.com