DOHA (Qatar) - Excitement grows as the FIBA West Asia Super League (WASL) Final 8 draws closer and closer, with many raring to see how the follow-up to the maiden tilt would unfold.

To make sure that everybody is on the same page, here is a quick guide for the basketball fans interested about the much-awaited competition ahead.

When and where is the FIBA WASL Final 8?

The tilt is scheduled to run from May 25 to June 1 at the Lusail Sports Hall.

The first two gamedays will feature triple-headers, with defending two-time Gulf League champions Kuwait Club opening things up against Tamil Nadu on May 25 at 15:00.

For the full schedule, click here.

What is the format?

The Group Phase will run from May 25th to May 29, with the top two teams from each group qualifying to the Semi-Finals set on the May 31. Teams finishing third and fourth in their groups, meanwhile, will be eliminated from contention.

Semis winners will then vie for the WASL Final 8 trophy on June 1. Losing sides will compete in a Third-Place Game to be played before the championship bout on the same date.

Who are the reigning champions?

Manama ruled the inaugural season at the expense of Kuwait Club, taking a 67-59 in a Final befitting of a title game at the Sheikh Saeed Bin Maktoum Sports Hall in Dubai.

Which teams are competing?

The Bahraini side are bannering this year's field looking to go back-to-back but it may be easier said than done, as the seven other teams are out to take the throne.

There's Kuwait Club, who's out for redemption after that heartbreak in the City of Gold. The two favorites represent the Gulf League cast in FIBA WASL's culminating meet, the other being Kazma. The Kuwaiti side punched their ticket by finishing third in the sub-zone.

Aside from Kazma, two other teams are making their debut in the Final 8. Tamil Nadu are coming in as the champions of South Asia, marking the first time that a club from the sub-zone will compete in the pan-regional competition's flagship event.

Then there's also Sagesse SC, who earned their slot following a third-place finish in the West Asia League. They are among the sub-zone's envoys together with long-time Lebanese rivals and back-to-back champions Al Riyadi and Shahrdary Gorgan.

Completing the participating cast of this year's Final 8 are BC Astana from Kazakhstan, representing Central Asia for the second consecutive time.

What are the groupings?

It will be interesting to see how each group would play out. One is widely perceived as the 'Group of Death,' while the other may pull off some surprises that could be crucial for the knockout stages. Take a quick look at the groupings of the 2024 Final 8:

#	Team
1	Al Riyadi
2	Manama
3	C.S. Sagesse
4	BC Astana

#	Team
1	Kuwait Club
2	Shahrdary Gorgan
3	Kazma
4	Tamil Nadu

What is at stake?

Teams are not only vying to be crowned as the king in the region. The two finalists will book a ticket to Dubai, UAE for the inaugural Basketball Champions League Asia (BCL Asia) from June 9-15 and compete with six others for the right to become the best club in the continent.

FIBA