A new Gilas Pilipinas Women’s head coach will take over the squad after Fujitsu Red Waves mentor Burke “BT” Toews was tapped by the Samahang Basketball Ng Pilipinas (SBP) to call the shots.
The announcement came Wednesday as the 60-year-old Canadian coach based in Japan will take over from Pat Aquino, who is now working alongside national grassroots program director Norman Black.
“After months of searching across continents and with more than a dozen applicants, the SBP selected a Canadian coach based in Japan to lead the squad, which currently ranks 30th in the world according to FIBA (International Basketball Federation),” the SBP said.
“In his 10 seasons with Fujitsu, he led the team to the Finals five times and earned three Coach of the Year awards.”
Toews led Fujitsu to back-to-back titles in 2024 and 2025 in the Women’s Japan Basketball League.
The Canadian tactician even led the Red Waves to an All-Japan Championship, the most prestigious tournament in the country, and the final of the FIBA Women’s Basketball League Asia in 2025 before losing to the Guangdong Vermilion Birds, 67-95.
Toews will inherit a Gilas Women’s squad that boasts veterans such as Afril Bernardino and Jack Animam as well as rising stars like Naomi Panganiban and Kacey dela Rosa.
The Philippines’ first acid test could be the upcoming William Jones Cup in Chinese Taipei sometime in July as they look to surpass its fifth-place finish from last year after only winning one out of five games.
Gilas Women are also expected to be competitive next year as the Philippines host the FIBA Asia Cup.
Toews will have big shoes to fill as Aquino has made Gilas Women into one of the best squads in Asia.
For starters, Aquino led the Philippines to three Southeast Asian Games gold medals with the recent mint coming from last year’s conquest in Bangkok.
Aquino, now the head coach for Blackwater in the Philippine Basketball Association, led the country to the Division A where they consistently faced powerhouse countries like Japan, Australia and China.
He also led the Philippines to a 74-59 victory over Colombia in the FIBA Women’s World Cup Qualifiers in France, the first time the country defeated a non-Asian squad.
While Aquino would still be involved in recruitment, he hoped that his successor would catapult the team to a whole new level.
“Of course, first of all, what I told them was to take care of the girls. I hope the program will continue with what we’ve been doing,” Aquino said.
“I hope the performance will have greater heights than what we’ve done.”