JOINT STATEMENT FROM BASKETBALL AUSTRALIA AND SAMAHANG BASKETBALL NG PILIPINAS

Following the incident that occurred during the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 Asian Qualifiers game between our senior men’s national teams on Monday, July 2, we wish to issue the following statement:

We deeply regret the events that took place during the game. The actions displayed have no place on any basketball court.

We wish to apologize to the entire basketball community worldwide – and in particular to our fantastic fans in the Philippines and Australia – for the behavior displayed by both teams and for bringing the game of basketball into disrepute.

We fully accept our responsibility and are collaborating in the ongoing proceedings to investigate the incidents.

We will do everything in our power to prevent this from happening again. Basketball has a unique power to unite and we look forward to continuing bringing people together in the true spirit of friendship and sportsmanship in future games.

Alfredo S. Panlilio, President of Samahang Basketball ng Pilipinas (SBP)
Ned Coten, President of Basketball Australia (BA)

Joint statement on incident during game on July 2, 2018 by
– Alfredo S. Panlilio, President of Samahang Basketball ng Pilipinas (SBP)
– Ned Coten, President of Basketball Australia (BA)