Taiwan beats Japan 90-77

Team Taiwan recovered from a sluggish start against Japan yesterday to win the first round of the Jones Cup 90-77. An explosive third quarter would prove the deciding factor as Taiwan took its first step to bettering its second-place finish in the tournament last year.

Taiwan got off to a fast start in the early minutes of the first quarter, pulling ahead 8-1. But the offense faltered at that point, shooting just 15 percent from the field in the first 8 minutes and going 0-8 in 3-point attempts, while Japan chipped away to finish the first quarter ahead 12-13.

Despite the offensive struggles, Taiwan's solid defense, which coaches and teammates said would be a key to success, managed to keep the score close.

Taiwan led Japan in rebounds 21-19 during the first half and entered halftime just 6 points behind with the score 33-39.

But Taiwan came roaring back in the third quarter, holding Japan to just 4 points in the first five minutes while shooters found their groove and pulled ahead 48-43. The 3-point shots started to drop and at the end of the quarter Taiwan had sunk seven 3-point attempts to pull ahead 64-54.

The furious third quarter, in which Taiwan outscored the Japanese 34-15 and scored nearly as many points as in the first two quarters combined, was topped off when Lin Chih-chien hit a shot from mid-court as the buzzer sounded.

Japan fought hard, staying within striking distance by sinking its first four 3-point attempts. However, each time they started to close the gap, Tseng Wen-ming immediately responded with a jam to snuff the rally.

With many star players hampered by injuries, Lin Chih-chien stepped up to contribute 20 points, including going 6-14 in three-point attempts.