Thailand bounce back; Iran, Indonesia, Jordan off to two straight wins

BANGKOK (Thailand) - Indonesia, Iran, Jordan, and Kazakhstan continue their impressive starts to their FIBA Women's Asia Cup 2023 Division B campaigns with yet another win.

Meanwhile, Thailand bounce back from a tough loss, getting their first Women's Asia Cup win since 2015.

Two straight victories for promotion-determined Indonesia

Indonesia went back and forth through the entire game against Malaysia and were able to stay calm and collected in the final minutes to get their second straight win, 60-55.

 

Neither team led by more than 7 points at any moment during the game and even the larger leads were quickly whittled down by the opposition in a thrilling clash between the two Southeast Asian rivals.

Malaysia took the lead 55-54 with 4 minutes left in the game, but were unable to put any more points on the board up until the final buzzer. Indonesia's Nathania Orville got her team back in the lead - the last of 18 lead changes in this game - for good a few seconds later.

Despite Indonesia losing the rebound battle (30-44), they did a better job of handling the ball (15 turnovers to Malaysia's 24) which was important, in particular, in the final moments of the game.

Kim Pierre-Louis finally recorded a double-double of 22 points and 12 rebounds after barely missing out in the previous game, although she'll be happy all the same with a second straight win.

Iran go from winless in 2021 to undefeated in 2023 so far

Iran has no trouble with Mongolia in their second game of the competition, winning 70-33 to stay undefeated. After going winless in Amman 2 years ago, Iran are now one of the top trending teams in the playing field with an undefeated record in convincing fashion.

 

It was a tough game for Mongolia as they were held scoreless for lengthy periods throughout the game, including a 16-0 run by Iran in the second half.

Four players scored in double-digits for the victors led by Delaram Vakili who knocked down 4 three-pointers to end up with 13 points. Edna Eissaianjangi, Negin Rasoulipour, and Faezeh Shahriari all put in 11 points each in the resounding win.

Jordan keep record perfect with dominating win

Jordan continue to look like a team to beat in Bangkok after collecting a dominating win over Sri Lanka, 81-42.

 

They kept Sri Lanka from scoring through nearly the entire last 7 minutes of the first quarter and cruised along the rest of the way to the victory.

Aisha Sheppard had no issues in putting up another productive game, going for 19 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, and 5 steals.

With just under 2 minutes left in the game, Thekra Shehadeh put in two points in the post, confirming that all Jordan players were on the scoreboard in this game.

Thailand bounce back with solid win over Kazakhstan

After a tough loss to Jordan on opening day, Thailand quickly regrouped and came back stronger in a 72-51 win.

 

Thailand were massively outrebounded in the first half (33-15) but managed to build a lead as big as 15 points but effectively converting Kazakhstan's turnovers (17) into points (21). Kazakhstan ended up winning the rebounds battle as expected, but could not overcome the affect of their 32 turnovers.

The visitors tried to mount comeback after comeback, but the hosts had too much firepower in them. Rattiyakorn Udomsuk went on a scoring-spree in the final minutes of the game to finish with a team-high 22 points. Earlier in the game, it was Thunchanok Lumdappang who carried the load for Thailand and finished with a spectacular line of 17 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals, and 4 steals.

Thailand and Kazakhstan are now in a deadlock with 1 win and 1 loss, with Thailand holding on to the head-to-head advantage going into the final day.

Daily Highs

Efficiency: 27 -Aisha Sheppard (JOR)
Points: 22 - Kim Pierre-Louis (INA), Thunchanok Lumdappang (THA)
Rebounds: 14 - Anna Bezgodova (KAZ)
Assists: 7 - Wei Yin Saw (MAS)
Steals: 5 -Aisha Sheppard (JOR)
Blocks: 4 -Thunchanok Lumdappang (THA)

Top Performers

 

Standings

 

Results and Fixtures

Group A
Malaysia vs Indonesia - 60-55
Mongolia vs Iran - 33-70

Group B
Sri Lanka vs Jordan - 42-81
Thailand vs Kazakhstan - 72-51

FIBA