Saudi Arabia cruises to win, punches ticket to Asia Cup along with India

JEDDAH (Saudi Arabia) - Saudi Arabia cruise to a 96-72 victory over Palestine to clinch Asia Cup tickets for both themselves and India to Asia Cup 2021.

Playing in front of a rowdy crowd in Jeddah once again, Saudi Arabia took the lead from the start and never looked back in this contest. The lead ballooned to as much as 37 points near the end of the third quarter, assuring that the home team were safe from a comeback rally.

It was the dynamic duo of Sani Sakakini (20 points, 12 rebounds) and Kyndall Dykes (22 points, 4 rebounds, 6 assists) that kept Palestine in this game as much as possible, but Saudi Arabia were too dominant on both ends of the floor.

The home team shot 58.5 percent from the floor, 47.6 percet from downtown, dished 26 assists, and made 10 steals in their win.

Five played scored in double-digits for Saudi Arabia led by Mohammed Almarwani who had 17 points and 7 rebounds. Fahad Belal was also impressive with 12 points and 8 assists to his name.

The win was the second straight for Saudi Arabia in the Qualifying Tournament, securing them the top spot in Group H along with qualification for the FIBA Asia Cup. The result of the game also dropped Palestine to two losses, meaning that India clinched second place in Group H and, more importantly, the other Asia Cup qualification spot.

FIBA