Grudge match?

The looming battle between the Philippines and Australia will not just be a story of two heavyweights clashing for a spot in the semifinals of the ongoing 2025 FIBA Asia Cup.

It would also be a narrative of two countries trying to bury the bitter memories of a brawl so massive, so ugly that it shook international basketball to its very foundation.

Gilas Pilipinas is battling Saudi Arabia at press time in a playoff that would give it the right to face Australia in the quarterfinals of this prestigious continental showpiece. Should the Filipinos prevail, they will face the Australians for the first time ever since trading shoves, punches, kicks — and even a flying chair — in a controversial free-for-all melee that erupted in a FIBA World Cup qualifying game on 2 July 2018 at the Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan.

The brawl was like a scene borrowed from a Hollywood movie.

The Boomers were humiliating the Filipinos in front of their fans with a huge 31-point lead in the third period when Chris Goulding got knocked out on a collision. Aussie big man Daniel Kickert retaliated by hitting RR Pogoy with a dangerous clothesline, triggering a free-for-all melee that shocked the international sports community.

Even 7-foot-1 Thon Maker was seen unloading flying kicks after suffering a punch from Terrence Romeo while Jio Jalalon, who was in street clothes, was pictured delivering a right hook into Nathan Sobey’s jaw.

When the smoke cleared, Maker, Goulding, Sobey, and Kickert were disqualified for the Boomers while Romeo, Jayson Castro, Carl Bryan Cruz, Calvin Abueva, Andray Blatche, Pogoy, Troy Rosario, Japeth Aguilar and Matthew Wright were ejected for Gilas.

Only three players — June Mar Fajardo, Gabe Norwood and Baser Amer — were left for the home squad before game officials formally declared the visitors as winners with an 89-53 decision.

Highlights of the match — and of the brawl — were played all over the world, prompting American commentators to compare it to what happened in the National Basketball Association when Ron Artest, Jermaine O’Neal of the Indiana Pacers and Ben Wallace of the Detroit Pistons engaged in an equally-ugly melee branded as “Malice at the Palace” in 2004.

The Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) was quick to apologize after the brawl, saying that “violence has no place in sports.”

Basketball Australia also expressed its regret but hoped for a harsher penalty to those involved, especially when assistant coach Luc Longley accused Gilas mentor Chot Reyes of inciting the violence and when Filipino players took a selfie inside the court in the aftermath of the tension.

A few years later, the wounds of the brawl appeared to have healed. In fact, Filipino star Kai Sotto even played for the Adelaide 36ers in the National Basketball League from 2021 to 2022 while Aussie clubs and players have also played on Filipino soil.

Together with Guam and New Zealand, both the Philippines and Australia also landed in Group A of the FIBA Basketball World Cup Asia Qualifiers, which means that the Boomers will be visiting Manila when they face Gilas Pilipinas in the qualifying windows starting this November.

SBP president Al Panlilio, in a recent interview, stressed that everything is now a thing of the past.

“I’ve developed a good relationship with the head of the federation of Australia,” Panlilio said.

“That was the past. We understand that. We learn from that. As far as I know, the anniversary (of the brawl) is July. But we have already moved on from that.”

He added that the Australians, in fact, are thrilled to visit the country and play in front of the Filipino crowd in the qualifiers for the World Cup.

“All the other federations want a game with the Philippine team. We have a good crowd,” Panlilio said.

“Even the World Cup qualifying seedings and groupings, New Zealand was happy, Australia was happy, and Guam was obviously happy because they will fill stadiums if the Philippines play there.”

In the ongoing Asia Cup, no bad blood has been boiling between the Filipinos and the Australians.

Although some members of the Gilas Pilipinas squad that got involved in the brawl like Fajardo, Aguilar and assistant coach Jong Uichico are still in the team, everything seems to be normal as the Nationals are focused on reclaiming the title that has been eluding them for the past 40 years.

The Filipinos blew hot and cold in the preliminaries, losing to Chinese Taipei and New Zealand before winning over Iraq to advance to the playoffs against Saudi Arabia for the right to face the No. 1 seed in Group C in the quarterfinals -- Australia.

Panlilio said facing the Australians very soon will be inevitable but they will play with pride and respect to prove that friendship and sportsmanship have taken over seven years since the fight that shocked the world.

“At the end of the day, with (Gilas coach) Tim (Cone), the focus is just to play. We don’t even think about that (Philippines-Australia brawl),” said the mild-mannered SBP chief, proving that time heals all wounds — even the ones created by the biggest brawl in basketball history.