Taiwan women's NT lost to Japan 69-59 Saturday after routing Maldives 127-23 in the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou, China.
It's almost certain that Taiwan will meet Group A leader, either China or South Korea, in the Nov. 24 semifinal match with a runner-up finish in Group B behind Japan, which will meet A2 in the semis.
Chiang Feng-chun led Taiwan in the losing effort with 16 points, 12 rebounds and six blocks. Wen Chi had 14 points and Liu Chun-yi added 10 points.
Japan was led by Yuko Oga's 15 points and six assists. Maki Takada and Hiromi Suwa scored 12 each.
Women's Standings:
Group A
China 2-0
South Korea 2-0
Thailand 0-2
India 0-2
Group B
Japan 1-0
Taiwan 1-1
Maldives 0-1
Meanwhile, Taiwan men's NT lost 72-70 to Qatar Friday and is now tied 1-2 with the Philippines in Group E. Looks like Taiwan and the Philippines will have to fight for the last quarterfinal seed in the group.
Lu Cheng-ju was 5 of 7 from three and scored 23 points to pace Taiwan, which also received 18 points from Tien Lei and 11 from Lin Chih-chieh.
Lu made two threes in the third period to cut the deficit to one and scored 11 to help Taiwan close in the gap again in the final quarter. Trailing 69-68, Tien Lei was stripped of the ball on his baseline drive as Taiwan failed to score on its last possession.
Without center Tseng Wen-ting, Taiwan was pounded on the boards, outrebounded 44-29 by Qatar.
Targuay Alban Ngombo led Qatar with 23 points and 11 rebounds while veteran Yaseen Musa had 15 and 12.
The quarterfinal round will use a knock-out format with F4 meets E1, for example.
Men's Standings:
Group E
China 3-0
South Korea 3-0
Jordan 2-1
Mongolia 1-2
North Korea 0-3
Uzbekistan 0-3
Group F
Japan 3-0
Iran 2-1
Qatar 2-1
Taiwan 1-2
Philippines 1-2
India 0-3
(Photo: Liberty times)