All hands on deck for 2015 FIBA Asia U16 Championship

JAKARTA (2015 FIBA Asia U16 Championship) - The 2015 FIBA Asia U16 Championship gets underway on Thursday in Jakarta, Indonesia with 15 teams vying to clinch just three berths for the 2016 FIBA U17 World Championship in Spain.

The field will be led by defending champions China, who will have the tallest team with an average height of 1.98m. Other East Asia teams who have qualified are Korea, Japan, Chinese Taipei, and Hong Kong.

2013 runners-up Philippines are also seen as a formidable force. The Filipinos lead a four-strong cast from Southeast Asia as they are joined by Malaysia, Thailand, and hosts Indonesia.

West Asia, meanwhile, is represented by sub-zone champions Iraq and runners-up Lebanon. For their part, Bangladesh is bannering the South Asian sub-zone together with India, while Bahrain and Kuwait will carry the fight for the Gulf region.

The teams have been divided into four groups. China, Philippines, Japan, and Chinese Taipei - the top four finishers of the 2013 FIBA Asia U16 Championship - have been separated in the first round.

Japan is in Group A, and are certainly favored to sweep the games there. Aren Hachimura and Taiga Kagitomi are the players expected to lead the junior Team Hayabusa. Malaysia may also impress, especially after their strong showing at the 2015 SEABA U16 tournament, while Kuwait and Hong Kong are definitely no pushovers.

Group B is bannered by Chinese Taipei, which has an average height of 1.90m. They will be led by 2.05m Wu Pei-Chia, who is projected to be a solid frontline contributor. Lebanon, which placed second at the 2014 West Asia U15 Championship, will rely on US-based wingman Karim Zeinoun, while Indonesia and Bangladesh will probably dispute the group’s final second round berth.

The Filipinos are expected to do well in Group C despite being severely undersized at almost every position. Fellow Southeast Asian team Thailand joins them in that group together with Gulf champions Bahrain, both of which are sure to pose a challenge. With DPR Korea not fielding a team, all three countries are through to the second round to join the top three Group D teams in Group F.

Lastly, Group D promises to have an entertaining mix of young talent. Coach Wang Jianjun's Chinese team should lord it over their foes, but the Koreans are pretty good, too. Yang Jae-Min, the only player here who also played in the 2013 edition, is projected to have a breakout performance for the traditional East Asian powerhouse. India and Iraq should both be competitive, too, given the fact they are parading a couple of players who are standing 2.08m.

The top three teams in each preliminary group move on to the second round, where the top eight teams qualify for the single elimination Quarter-Finals.

FIBA