
Tyrese Proctor and the rest of Australia’s long-range bombers are ready to give Gilas Pilipinas a rude welcome in Perth.
Photograph courtesy of FIBA
Twenty-four three-pointers.
Australia nailed that many bombs from beyond the arc against the last team that visited Perth.
Gilas Pilipinas pretty much has its work cut out.
The unbeaten Boomers will have their snipers ready against the Philippines in their bid to complete a sweep of the 2027 FIVB World Cup Asian Qualifier first round today at the RAC Arena.
Australia went 24-of-51 from the three-point area to torch winless Guam in a 124-52 massacre last Friday for its fifth win in as many outings to begin its homestand in the third window.
The world No. 6 team reset the World Qualifiers record by shattering Mexico’s 22 made triples three years ago against Colombia.
Australia bested its own Asian Qualifiers’ most made threes by three hits after converting 21 in a game against Qatar in 2018.
Already through to the next phase alongside other Group A nations New Zealand and Gilas, the Aussies are seeking a good ending in the round to bolster their chances of making it to the world stage next year in Qatar.
Head coach Adam Caporn believes they have enough long-range shooters, all capable of dropping bombs if given open looks.
In fact, Guam made the fatal mistake of employing zone defense.
“Obviously, a factor into the game is they came out in the zone and we shot the ball really well,” he said.
“So, taking 51 threes and shooting at such a good clip sustained our momentum as well.”
Gilas, which has yet to win over Australia in over 50 years, will have a lot of ground to cover as five Boomers connected more than two treys in the last game.
Tyrese Proctor has six triples, Angus Glover added five while Bryce Cotton and Jack McVeigh had four each. Reyne Smith drained three triples in as many tries.
Australia has been blowing up opponents since the second window. The Boomers had close back-to-back victories over the Tall Blacks but clipped Guam by 13 points and Gilas by 27 in the second.
“We’ve talked a lot about contributing to the Boomers legacy. Every second we’re together, practice, games. And I thought we really tried hard to do that. Stuck with the whole game plan the whole time,” Caporn said.
“The concentration, effort, taking charges, when we’re up by big margins. Really proud of how we went about it.”
Australia blasted Gilas, 93-66, in its road game in Manila on 1 March.
The Aussies punished the Filipinos with 15 three-pointers.
Now, the Boomers plan to do the same against a Gilas side reeling from three consecutive losses.