A major reset is quietly unfolding inside the Gilas Pilipinas Women program.
For years, the national team’s rise had been closely tied to the leadership of Pat Aquino — the longtime architect behind some of the country’s biggest breakthroughs in women’s basketball.
Now, with Aquino officially out as head coach, the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas appears determined to steer the program toward a completely new direction ahead of a packed international calendar that includes the FIBA Women’s Olympic Pre-Qualifying Tournament in August and the Asian Games in September.
Speaking to reporters on Monday at the Filoil EcoOil Centre, SBP Head of Communications Carlo Pamintuan revealed that the federation has already reached an agreement with Aquino’s replacement — though the official announcement is still pending the completion of contract formalities.
“Two things: first, I want to officially say that Gilas Pilipinas Women has already agreed with its upcoming head coach. It’s a name that I cannot announce yet because we’re still finalizing the details of the contract,” Pamintuan said.
“But a lot of the terms have already been agreed upon, and it will be announced, I think in the next two days after everything is signed. So we’re just waiting for the formality before we get to announce it.”
What the SBP has already made clear, however, is the type of direction it wants to pursue.
Instead of staying local, the federation intentionally leaned toward a foreign coach — a move heavily influenced by conversations with Tom Hovasse, the former Japan men’s and women’s national team mentor who famously guided Japan to a silver medal finish in the 2020 Summer Olympics women’s basketball tournament.
According to Pamintuan, Hovasse was never officially considered for the role itself.
Rather, the decorated coach served as a resource person during the search process as SBP attempted to study the blueprint behind Japan’s sustained success in women’s basketball.
“In terms of Gilas Pilipinas Women, the SBP had a conversation with former Japan Women’s and Men’s head coach Tom Hovasse. But it was never in an interview capacity. He never applied for the job. He was not considered for the job, but his input as a reference was valued by the Federation,” Pamintuan shared.
“We all know that Japan has a really strong women’s program. Currently, I believe they’re number three in Asia, including Australia, China, and Japan. And we want to emulate the same success as Japan. We’ve seen their results so that is why the search for Gilas Pilipinas Women Head Coach skewed towards that direction.”
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“So again, we really thank Coach Tom Hovasse for his input. We value everything that he shared with us. But the SBP wants to clarify that he did not apply for the job. He never interviewed for the job. We just were able to talk to him as a reference in terms of helping us find the best candidate we need in this specific time.”
The changes within the program extend beyond the senior team.
In another key development, Bacon Austria has been appointed program director for Gilas Women, adding another experienced Ateneo figure into the national team structure.
Austria recently guided the Ateneo Blue Eagles to a breakthrough Final Four appearance in the UAAP Season 88 boys’ basketball tournament, finishing with an impressive 11-3 record.
Meanwhile, veteran tactician Sandy Arespacochaga will take over the Gilas Youth Women program, replacing former head coach Julie Amos.
For Arespacochaga, the appointment marks a return to familiar territory after previously serving within the national team setup during his earlier stint with Gilas Youth in 2019.
“I think you have already kind of seen it, but Gilas Pilipinas Youth Women will be led by coach Sandy Arespacochaga. He has been running the practices with the team and they’re already deep in their preparations for their SEABA competitions this June,” Pamintuan said.
The youth squad is currently preparing for the 2026 FIBA U18 Women’s Asia Cup SEABA Qualifiers set from June 2 to 6 in Bacolod.
Taken together, the moves signal something larger than a simple coaching change.
After years of gradual progress under Aquino, SBP now appears intent on reshaping the entire Gilas Women structure — from the senior squad down to the youth pipeline — in hopes of building a program capable of consistently competing with Asia’s elite.
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