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| Gilas moved up in the first FIBA rankings update under a new calculation system. Peter Baltazar (file photo) |
MANILA--After showing its might against Guam in its two-game set to open the FIBA World Cup Qualifiers, Gilas Pilipinas moved up a spot in the world men's basketball rankings.
As revealed on Thursday night, Gilas jumped one spot to number 36 in the world, taking the place of the Ivory Coast, which fell to 39th.
Gilas remains number seven among Asia-Pacific teams, as there was no movement among the top 11 nations from the said region.
The continental ranking shakeup began at number 12 when Syria overtook Bahrain, following a two-spot jump in the world rankings to number 72 overall.
The Top 10 teams in the world remain unchanged after the November-December window of the continental qualifiers for the FIBA World Cup, with the United States, the reigning Olympic champ, and Germany, the defending World Cup winner, still 1-2.
Turkiye and Latvia switched places as the Turkish squad is now at number 11 and the Latvians are down to 12th.
The latest FIBA rankings are the first under a new calculation system wherein merely playing in an official FIBA game already earns a team rating points and will no longer lose points from hereon.
Adding FIBA rating points to national teams now follows an accumulative model wherein "teams add points to their current rating totals when they play a game," according to a statement from the governing body last week.
The "eight-year point decay" on the rating points has been replaced by a "regular 33 percent discount" to be implemented before a major FIBA-sanctioned event.
The new FIBA ranking system also rewards teams that go deep into tournaments or qualifying rounds, as those who advance further will earn more rating points depending on how far they go.
The new rating point calculation favored Guam as it jumped two spots to number 79 in the world, even if it got blown out by an average of 32.5 points per game during its home-and-home set with Gilas.
