Taiwan’s teams finished third and fourth among the six contenders in the women’s division at the William Jones Cup invitational basketball tournament, which concluded at the Taipei Heping Basketball Gymnasium on Wednesday.
Taiwan’s Team A, comprising the main roster of the national team, lost 76-93 to South Korea’s Busan BNK Sum, who were second overall with a 4-1 record.
The William Jones Cup was won by Japan’s Chansan V-Magic from the country’s premier women’s basketball league. They were unbeaten through their five games.
Photo: CNA
After their final game, Team A head coach Cheng Hui-yun expressed dissatisfaction with their defensive performance.
If the problems are not resolved before the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, from Sept. 23 to Oct. 8, it could be “ugly” for the team.
Chen Yen-yu nailed all five of her attempts from beyond the arc against Busan, adding 42 points in combination with Chen Wei-an, but it was not enough as Lee So-hee led Busan with 31 points.
Chen Yen-yu, who plays for the Sichuan Blue Whales in Taiwan’s women’s professional CBA, said she has not lost faith in the team despite their third-place finish.
The national team would be strengthened for the Asian Games with the return of players from the World University Games in Chengdu, China, which ended on Tuesday, Chen Yen-yu said.
Taiwan’s Team B, comprising younger players seen as potential national team members, beat Iran 74-64 on Wednesday to end the William Jones Cup in fourth place with a 2-3 record.
Iran, with a 0-5 record, were sixth, while the Philippines finished fifth with a 1-5 record.
Chen Yen-yu was named among the five most outstanding players at the tournament alongside Lee and three Japanese: Mai Yoshida, Koike Haruka and Izoje Uche.
The men’s division is to begin tomorrow, with Taiwan’s A and B teams among seven other teams from South Korea, Japan, the Philippines, Qatar, Iran, the United Arab Emirates and the US.
The tournament, which began in 1977, is named after British basketball promoter Renato William Jones, the first secretary-general of the International Basketball Federation, who held the post from 1932 to 1976.
Chen Yi-tung (陳奕通) secured a historic Olympic berth on Sunday by winning the senior men’s foil event at the 2024 Asia Oceania Zonal Olympic Fencing Qualifiers in United Arab Emirates. Chen defeated Samuel Elijah of Singapore 15-4 in the final in Dubai to secure the only wild card in the event, making him the first male Olympian fencer from Taiwan in 36 years and only the sixth Taiwanese fencer to ever qualify for the quadrennial event. The last appearance by a Taiwanese male fencer at the Olympics was in 1988, when Wang San-tsai (王三財) and Cheng Ming-hsiang (鄭明祥) competed in Seoul. The
Rafael Nadal on Tuesday lost in straight sets to 31st-ranked Jiri Lehecka in the fourth round at the Madrid Open, while Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei advanced to the semi-finals in the women’s doubles. Nadal said that he was feeling good about his progress following his latest injury layoff. Nadal called it a “positive week” in every way and said his body held up well. “I was able to play four matches, a couple of tough matches,” Nadal said. “So very positive, winning three matches, playing four matches at the high level of tennis. I enjoyed a lot playing at home. I leave here with
A soccer jersey carrying a national map including disputed Western Sahara has become a hot commodity in Morocco after a diplomatic dispute with Algeria. Retailers said RS Berkane jerseys have been flying off the shelves after a Confederation of African Football (CAF) Cup match against Algerian club USM Alger was canceled last month over the jerseys. “We are overwhelmed by the influx of messages and requests,” said Brahim Rabii, representative of the official RS Berkane jersey distributor. Algeria broke off diplomatic relations with Morocco in 2021, partly over the issue of Western Sahara. The former Spanish colony is largely controlled by Morocco, but claimed
OUT AGAINST INDONESIA: Taiwan reached the semi-finals at the tournament for the first time by defeating Denmark, with Chou Tien-chen beating Viktor Axelsen Taiwan yesterday crashed out of the Thomas Cup team competition in Chengdu, China, but achieved their best result at the top-tier badminton event by reaching the semi-finals. Indonesia were too good in the semis, winning 3-0 to advance to today’s final against China, who eliminated Malaysia 3-1. In the opening singles of the men’s team clash at the Hi-Tech Zone Sports Center Gymnasium 2, Anthony Ginting defeated Taiwan’s Chou Tien-chen 21-18, 21-19 in 51 minutes, which put a huge hole in Taiwan’s aspirations to perhaps even make the final. In the men’s doubles, Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Ardianto downed Lee Yang and Wang