PANAMA CITY (FIBA World Championship) - Panama's preparations for the Centrobasket and FIBA World Championship later this year will include a visit to Puerto Rico for the COPA Airlines Cup.

Panama's general manager, Guillermo Nurse, told Primera Hora newspaper: "We'll play three matches in Puerto Rico.

"We haven't confirmed the dates, but it could be in the last week of June, because we know Puerto Rico have a very special game against the United States ahead of that."

Panama's players will gather and begin training on June 5 under new coach Guillermo Vecchio, an Argentinian who is currently managing Grises in the Puerto Rican BSN league.

Panama will face New Zealand, Germany, Japan, Spain and Angola in Group B of the World Championship, which tips off in August in Japan.

By PA Sport, Exclusively for FIBA

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