Philippines win first Asian Games gold in over 60 years
HANGZHOU (China) - The Philippines win the gold medal in Men's Basketball at the 19th Asian Games, concluding the competition in Hangzhou, China.
HANGZHOU (China) - The Philippines win the gold medal in Men's Basketball at the 19th Asian Games, concluding the competition in Hangzhou, China.
The Final Standings of the Asian Games are:
1. Philippines
2. Jordan
3. China
4. Chinese Taipei
5. Iran
6. Saudi Arabia
7. Korea
8. Japan
The final day started with Korea beating Japan 74-55 to salvage a victory and finish at 7th place in the competition. Korea led for almost the entire game and as much as 25 points. All seven fielded players scored at least 9 points, led by JongKyu Kim's 19.
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Iran were then able to secure 5th place with a commanding 92-60 win over Saudi Arabia. They started with a 23-11 first quarter and cruised through the rest of the way with 4 players scoring in double-digits, led by Matin Aghajanpour's 17 points. Despite the loss, Saudi Arabia's 6th place finish is their best ever in the Asian Games.
China struggled early on against Chinese Taipei, but ended up with a 101-73 win to come out with a bronze medal on their home turf. Chinese Taipei actually led at the end of the first half 49-46, but the second half was an entirely different story. The hosts exploded for a 34-10 advantage in the third quarter and never looked back. Rising youngster Yongxi Cui led the team with 20 points with four other players scoring at least 10 points in this game. This was enough to counter Chinese Taipei's own rising star Ting-Chien Lin who led the team again with 20 points on his end.
The grand finale of the competition ended with the Philippines securing their first Asian Games gold medal in basketball in over 60 years, beating Jordan 70-60.
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The Philippines had lost the matchup to Jordan earlier in the Group Phase of the competition but made sure to win in the important clash. Justin Brownlee wrapped up a memorable performance throughout the tournament with 20 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals, while Ange Kouame put his defensive chops on display with 5 steals and 2 blocks to go with 15 points and 11 rebounds.
FIBA