Japan down Australia to enter final

In the clash of heavyweights, defending champions Japan saw off Australia 76-64 to enter the final of the Division A FIBA Women’s Asia Cup basketball tournament at the Sree Kanteerava Indoor Stadium here on Saturday.

In the final on Sunday, Japan will take on 11-time champions China, who brushed aside South Korea 80-52 in the other last-four clash.

Nako Motohashi, who finished with 22 points and six assists, emerged as Japan’s top-performer. The diminutive point guard, using her electric speed, ran circles around the Australian defence, who despite their size advantage, failed to stop her. Yuki Miyazawa was a rock at the back. The small forward collected 15 rebounds, 12 of which were defensive. She also added 19 points. Jenna O’Hea, with 12 points, top-scored for the Opals while Rebecca Allen (11) and Leilani Mitchell (10) made valuable contributions.

Seeking to avenge their dramatic one-point loss to Japan in 2017, Australia began brightly. The Opals, on the back of three-pointers from Cayla George and Jenna, were up 11-2 after the first four minutes. But Motohashi kept picking up points to help Japan keep up the pace. After the first quarter, the Aussies led 23-15.

Japan turned the tables in the second 10 minutes. Stepping up a notch, the speedy Japanese cut the gap to 22-28. A three-pointer from Motohashi reduced the deficit to one point (27-28) before Miyazawa came up with a pin-point throw from beyond the arc to snatch the advantage (30-28). With the lead secured, the Japanese upped their momentum went into the break leading 35-28.

Australia outplayed Japan 20-17 in the third quarter. However, Miyazawa and Maki Takada scored at crucial junctures to stay ahead. The Opals trailed by just six points (48-52) after the quarter.

But they failed to carry on the momentum as Japan snatched control in the fourth, outscoring the World No. 3 side 24-16 to seal their place in the final.

Impressed with the performance, Japan coach Tom Hovasse commended the team. “I think we weathered the storm in the first quarter, we showed a lot of patience and didn’t put our heads down. I told the players to keep their foot on the gas pedal,” said Hovasse at the post-match press conference.

Results: Semifinals: Japan 76 (Nako Motohashi 22, Yuki Miyazawa 19, Ramu Tokashiki 10) bt Australia 64 (Jenna O’Hea 12, Leilani Mitchell 10, Bec Allen 11); China: 80 (Xu Han 17, Liwei Yang 16, Yueru Li 11) bt South Korea: 52 (Hyeyoon Bae 10).

5th Place playoff: New Zealand: 71 (Micaela Cocks 18, Natalie Taylor 12) bt Chinese Taipei: 56 (Ping-Jen Huang 13, Pei-Chen Tsai 10).

On Sunday: Japan vs China (5:45 pm).