Taiwan on Saturday finished third in Group B of the FIBA Asia Cup in Indonesia, after a 15-point loss to China set them up for a quarter-finals qualification matchup.
Following the 95-80 loss to China, Taiwan finished the round-robin group phase with a 1-2 record, trailing an undefeated South Korea and regional powerhouse China, which was 2-1 at the tournament played at Istora Stadium in Jakarta.
Bahrain finished last in the group with three defeats.
Photo: AFP
In each of the four groups at the Asia Cup, four teams compete for the top spot, which automatically puts them through to the quarter-finals of the Asia Cup. The second and third-placed teams in each group face off in a quarter-finals qualification round, with the four winners progressing.
Taiwan are today to play Jordan in their qualification matchup.
At a post-game news conference, Taiwan head coach Charles Parker said the team was missing two key players on Saturday.
“But the ones that did play, I’m very proud of their efforts,” Parker said.
Taiwan was making three-pointers in the first half, but was unable to keep it up for the whole game, whereas China was consistent in their shooting, he said.
However, the American basketball coach said he was hopeful about their chances to qualify for the quarter-finals.
In the “next game, we look to make more shots, free throws and threes. I think we are capable of beating anybody here in the Asia Cup. I really believe that we have a chance to go all the way to the final four,” he said.
Taiwan on Saturday stayed within reach of China through to the third quarter, only trailing by nine points before the start of the fourth.
However, it was then they had difficulty sinking shots, while China remained consistent, at one point leading a 21-15-point run.
Taiwan shooting guard Lin Ting-chien led all scorers with 30 points, shooting 10-17 from the floor, including 7-7 from the stripe. American-Taiwanese center William Artino posted a double-double of 18 points and 12 rebounds, while China center Wang Zhelin led his team with 17 points.
A pioneer of basketball in Asia, Taiwan was one of the seven countries to play in the first Asia Cup in 1960, when it finished second to the Philippines. Since then, Taiwan has qualified for the Asia Cup almost every year, except for 1975 to 1983.
NO HARD FEELINGS: Taiwan’s Lin Hsiang-ti and Indonesia’s Dhinda Amartya Pratiwi embraced after fighting to a tense and rare 30-29 final game in their Uber Cup match The Taiwanese men’s team on Wednesday fought back from the brink of elimination to defeat Denmark in Group C and advance to the quarter-finals of the Thomas Cup, while the women’s team were to face South Korea after press time last night in the Uber Cup quarter-finals in Horsens, Denmark. In the first match, Taiwan’s top shuttler Chou Tien-chen faced a familiar opponent in world No. 3 Anders Antonsen. It was their 16th head-to-head matchup, with the Dane taking his fourth victory in a row against former world No. 2 Chou, winning 21-14, 13-21, 21-15 in 1 hour, 22 minutes. The
Jannik Sinner continued his quest to become the first man in history to win five Masters 1000 tournaments in a row with a 6-2, 6-3 victory over Danish qualifier Elmer Moller at the Madrid Open on Sunday. The world leader extended his winning streak to 19 matches, a run that began early March in Indian Wells, and he has captured 24 consecutive victories at the Masters 1000 level, dating back to the Paris Masters last October. Searching for a maiden title at this level on clay, Sinner advanced to the round of 16 at the Caja Magica with a 77-minute performance against
When Paddy Dwyer arrived in China in 1976, crowds jostled to catch a glimpse of him and his companions — the first Western soccer team to play in the country. China was emerging from the chaos of the Cultural Revolution, and on the brink of market reforms that would take the country from economic stagnation to explosive growth. “All we could see was lines of people running beside our bus, trying to look in the windows, to see their first visual of a white person,” he said. “It was all bicycles,” he said. “There were very few cars to be seen.” Dwyer,
Tennis players are facing an unexpected opponent at the Madrid Open. A stomach virus or food poisoning has affected Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff, Marin Cilic and others, raising concerns. World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka avoided an upset by Naomi Osaka on the court on Monday and said she is trying to avoid illness by sticking to a diet of chicken breasts, rice and salad. The rumor among the players was bad shrimp tacos were to blame. Sabalenka knocked on wood for luck and said, “So far, so good. I heard that I have to avoid those tacos,” she laughed, adding “I stick to the
RSS