Gilas Pilipinas Youth faces defending champion Australia for the top spot in Group A in the FIBA U18 Asia Cup on Saturday at the Veer Savarkar Indoor Stadium in Ahmedabad, India.

Tip-off is at 1 p.m. (Manila time), with Gilas Youth looking to stay unbeaten and strengthen its bid for a direct quarterfinal berth.

The Philippines narrowly escaped Chinese Taipei in its opening game last Thursday, pulling off an 89-88 victory after surrendering a 27-point lead in the second half.

Ethan Aguas, who hit the game-winning basket, said Gilas Youth cannot afford to repeat the mistakes it made against the Taiwanese.

“We will learn from our mistakes. I think we have seen enough. There were a lot of mistakes that we made,” said Aguas, who finished with a double-double of 16 points and 10 rebounds.

“So we will just execute our coaches’ game plan.”

Australia, meanwhile, hardly broke a sweat in its opening game, crushing Thailand, 102-32, with five players scoring in double figures.

The Emus, the monicker of the young Australian squad, are expected to use their size to their advantage after dominating the boards with 72 rebounds against Thailand while scoring 62 points in the paint.

A loss to Australia would force Gilas Youth into a playoff game for a chance to advance to the quarterfinals.

Jai Fa’ale will be Gilas Youth’s primary defensive concern after leading Australia with 22 points, seven rebounds, five assists and four steals against Thailand.

The Philippines will counter with Jan Bennett Cagurungan, who erupted for 21 points and five rebounds in the win over Chinese Taipei.

The winner of Saturday’s clash will take control of Group A and move closer to securing a direct ticket to the quarterfinal.