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Asian Games: China beats C. Taipei in men’s basketball semis, to face Iran
China’s men’s basketball team will face Iran in Saturday's final after beating Chinese Taipei in the semifinals 86-63.
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Illustration of basketball game. (Shutterstock/File)
China’s men’s basketball team secured a ticket to the Asian Games final after beating Chinese Taipei in the semifinals on Thursday. The match, held at the Gelora Bung Karno Sports Complex, was won convincingly by China, finishing with a double digit margin 63-86.
China’s assistant coach Bernard Voogd of the United States said his players used their height advantage as a strategy to break open their opponent’s defense.
“They are really a well-coached team, the players are smart and really physical, but undersized. Therefore, we really wanted to rebound and go down low by playing our tall players,” he said.
Chinese Taipei player Douglas Creighton agreed that the height of the Chinese players was a decisive factor in the match, especially in the second half.
“I honestly think it was just a matter of size. They are bigger than us and there is nothing we can do about it,” he said, adding that his team was now focusing on the bronze medal match against South Korea.
Iran defeated South Korea 68-80 on the same day to set up a playoff with China for the gold medal. Iran’s women’s basketball team also progressed to the final against Unified Korea after defeating Japan 86-74 on Thursday.
