Schedule of Games for Prelim Round announced: 22nd FIBA Asia U18 Championship

via FIBA Asia

ULAANBAATAR, Mongolia (22nd FIBA Asia U18 Championship): The schedule of games for the Preliminary Round competition at the 22nd FIBA Asia U18 Championship to be played in Ulaanbaatar (Mongolia) from Aug 17-26 has been announced.

Nine-time gold medalists and defending champions China will open their campaign against Hong Kong with Korea, the silver medalists of the last edition at the 21st FIBA Asia Championship at Sana’A (Yemen) two years ago lining up against fellow East Asian team and archrivals Japan on the opening day of the competition.

Taiwan U18 NT gearing up for Asian competition

A total of 24 players were named by the CTBA to the preliminary roster for the 22nd FIBA Asia U18 Championship for Men in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.

Training camp for the tournament, which will be held from Aug. 17-26, opened on June 6 in Taipei with former Taiwan NT point guard Yen Hsin-shu, assistant on Taiwan’s U19 World Championship team last year, serving as the head coach.

World U19: Taiwan finishes 14th place in Latvia

Taiwan was routed by China 91-48 in its final game in the FIBA U19 World Championship for Men in Latvia and finished with 14th place in its first trip to the junior worlds in 24 years.

World U19: Taiwan beats Tunisia in classifications

Chen Ying-chun scored 24 points and Yu Chun-an added 19 as Taiwan defeated Tunisia 70-59 in the classification round (13-16 place) of the FIBA U19 World Championship for Men in Latvia.

Taiwan will meet China Wednesday to vie for the 13th place finish.

World U19: Taiwan routed by Australia

Taiwan U19 NT was routed by Australia 93-65 in the third and last preliminary game in the FIBA U19 World Championship for Men Sunday in Valmeira, Latvia.

Taiwan lost all three games in the preliminary round to finish last in Group B. It is scheduled to meet Tunisia tomorrow in the classification games for 13th-16th place.

World U19: Taiwan loses to Argentina, drops two straight

Taiwan U19 NT suffered the second straight loss in less than 24 hours after an 80-69 defeat to the taller and stronger Argentina in its second game in the preliminary round of the FIBA U19 Championship for Men in the Latvian city of Valmiera Saturday.

World U19: Taiwan falls to host Latvia

Latvia's height was too much for Taiwan NT to overcome. Taiwan fell to the home team Latvia 85-67 early Friday morning Taiwan Time in its opening game of the FIBA U19 World Championship for Men at Valmiera, Latvia.

Taiwan, which returned to the World Championship after 24 years, only trailed by nine points at the half, 42-33, but was not able to challenge Latvia in the second half. As the smallest team in the 16-team tournament, Taiwan was outrebounded by Latvia 57-17.

Huang Wan-lung's interview with FIBA.com

It seemed to me that Huang intentionally omitted Hu Lung-mao and Chen Ying-chun when he was asked to name notable players on the team, haha.

Taiwan U19 NT in Riga

Taiwan U19 NT arrived in Riga, Latvia in the afternoon of June 27 local time and stayed at Dikli Palace Hotel. The team had a two-a-day (1p.m. and 9p.m.) on June 28 in a local high school and the tournament venue Vidzeme Olympic Center.

Taiwan U19 NT departs for Latvia

Taiwan U19 national team departed for Latvia Sunday for the FIBA U19 World Championship for Men, hoping that they will pull off another miracle.

Taiwan is scheduled to meet host Latvia at 1:30a.m. July 1 Taiwan Time. Less than 17 hours later, they will meet Argentina at 9p.m. July 2 (Taiwan Time) before finishing the preliminary round against Australia at 9a.m. the next day.

Taiwan a underdog in FIBA U19 World Championship for Men

Here's FIBA.com's preview of the U19 World Championship for Men in Latvia. No doubt, Taiwan U19 NT is definitely the underdog in the tournament -- being the smallest team in the field.

BYHU's Wagner instructing Taiwan NTs

[Ken Wagner]

Ken Wagner, head coach of the U.S. NCAA Div-II school BYU-Hawaii, gave two Taiwan national teams instruction during his short stay in Taiwan, local media reported.

Wagner, who led BYUH to the NCAA Div-II men's championship game this year, was brought in by NIKE Taiwan to coach in its Taiwan summer camp and help train Taiwan's U19 NT, which is going to Latvia for the FIBA U19 World Championship.

2011 Taiwan women's NT rosters

The CTBA announced preliminary rosters of Taiwan women's NT, Taiwan U19 women's NT and Taiwan U16 women's NT, which are listed as follow.

Taiwan NT head coaches announced

Women's NT

FIBA Asia Women's Championship: Chang Hui-ying, Taipower

**Chang replaced Cathay Life's Hung Ling-yao, who resigned from her post citing family business one week after her nomination, as the head coach. Chang will be making her debut as the NT head coach.

FIBA U19 Women's Championship: Chen Mei-li, Tamsui High School

FIBA Asia U16 Women's Championship: Shi Chao-chieh, Yung-jen Junior High School

Men's NT

FIBA Asia Men's Championship: Chou Jun-san, Taiwan Beer

FIBA U19 Men's Championship: Huang Wan-lung, Song-shan High School

FIBA Asia U16 Men's Championship: Lin Cheng-ming, Nen-ren High School

FIBA Asia U18 Men: Taiwan beat Iran for bronze

Taiwan won its first medal in the FIBA Asia U18 Championship for Men since 2000 and a berth to represent Asia in the 2011 FIBA U19 World Championship after edging Iran 65-60 in the bronze medal game in Sanaa, Yemen late Friday Taiwan time.

Hung Kang-chiao scored a team-high 18 points and Hu Lung-mao added 17 points as Taiwan used a 14-5 run in the third quarter to control the momentum before holding off Iran's furious rally in the final period.

Taiwan, which opened the biennial tournament with an overtime loss to the defending champion Iran, limited the Iranians to a miserable 30 percent field goal shooting percentage in the game for a sweet revenge.

"We have improved a lot, haven't we? " Taiwan head coach Huang Wan-lung quipped after the game, according to the post-game report on the FIBA Asia Web site.

Taiwan last won a medal -- also a bronze -- in the biennial tourney in Kuala Lumpur in 2000, when Huang served on the Taiwanese junior national team as an assistant coach under South Korean head coach Chung Kwang Suk.

Taiwan has never won the junior tournament. It won silver medals in 1972 and 1989 and took home bronze in 1974, 1987, 2000 and 2010. Two years ago, Taiwan finished an all-time worst ninth place.

With the win, Taiwan secured one of three Asian berths in the 2011 FIBA U19 World Championship, which will be held in Latvia from June 30 to July 10, 2011. Taiwan's previous appearance in the world's top-level junior competition came 23 years ago, when they played at Bormio, Italy in 1987.

China routed South Korea 103-80 in the title game to win its ninth gold in the history of the tournament. The gold and silver medalists will also play in Latvia.

China wins gold

(Photos: FIBA Asia)

FIBA Asia U18 Men: Taiwan loses to South Korea in semis

Taiwan missed an opportunity to make history by losing to South Korea 79-68 Thursday in the semifinal of the FIBA Asia U18 Championship for Men in Sanaa, Yemen.

If the team had advanced to the championship game, it would have at least matched its best record -- silver medal finishes in 1972 and 1989 -- in the biennial tournament and could have made a challenge for its first gold in history.

Taiwan was dealt a knockout blow in the decisive third quarter, when the Koreans opened the second half with a 17-2 run, turning a close game into a rout. Taiwan was out-scored 23-10 in the period and trailed by as many as 18 points.

Unable to match Korea's inside play, Taiwan was out-rebounded 39-22. Korea, which was led by Lee Seounghyun's 17 points and 14 rebounds and Lee Jonghyun's 15 points and 10 rebounds, also made 10 more free throws than the Taiwanese.

Center Hu Lung-mao scored a team-high 25 points to go with eight rebounds and six steals for Taiwan, which was leading 35-34 at halftime. Chen Ying-chun and Huang Po-wei had 13 points each.

The team will meet Iran, which lost to China in the other semifinal match, in Friday's bronze medal game. It is still something worth playing for because the top three teams in the tournament will represent Asia in the 2011 FIBA U19 World Championship, which will be played in Latvia June 30-July 10, 2011.

FIBA Asian U18 Men: Taiwan advanced to semifinals

Taiwan beat the Philippines 81-64 in the quarterfinal of the FIBA Asia U18 Championship for Men Wednesday in Sanaa, Yemen and advanced to the semifinals of the tournament for the first time in four years.

Taiwan, which is awaiting its semifinal opponent -- the winner between Japan and South Korea, as of press time, will be able to at least duplicate its fourth place finish in 2006 and make a strong bid to surpass its best record in the history of the biennial tourney -- silver medal finishes in 1972 and 1989.

Defensive-minded Taiwan limited the Philippines to 38 percent field goal percentage, including 1 for 12 behind the three-point line, and controlled the boards (46-33) for the victory. On the offensive end, Taiwan had five players scoring in double-figures as Hu Lung-mao paced the team with 13 points and 13 rebounds and Chen Ying-chun also added 13 points.

"I think the boys were nervous early on. But once we found our rhythm, there was no stopping us," Taiwan head coach Huang Wan-lung was quoted as saying by the FIBA Asia Web site.

Taiwan closed out the third quarter with a 8-2 run before scoring the first six points in the fourth quarter to put the game away, leading by 17 with five minutes left in the game.

The top three teams in the tournament will represent Asia in the 2011 FIBA U19 World Championship, which will be played in Latvia from 30 June-10 July 2011.

FIBA Asia U18 Men - Taiwan to meet Philippines in quarterfinal

Final second round standings:
(Goal differential is used as the tie-breaker)

Group E
1. Korea 4-1 1.17
2. Iran 4-1 1.16
3. Taiwan 3-2 1.16
4. Lebanon 2-3 1.01
5. Kazakhstan 2-3 0.97
6. Malaysia 0-5 0.61

Group F
1. China 5-0 1.45
2. Philippines 3-2 1.04
3. Yemen 3-2 1.03
4. Japan 3-2 0.93
5. Syria 1-3 0.89
6. Iraq 0-5 0.74

Quarterfinal matchups:
Korea vs. Japan
China vs. Lebanon
Taiwan vs. Philippines
Yemen vs. Iran

FIBA Asia U18 Men: Taiwan advances to quarterfinals

Report from CNA:

Taipei, Sept. 27 (CNA) Taiwan beat Kazakhstan 79-61 in the second round of the FIBA Asia U18 Men's Championship at Sanaa, Yemen Monday to advance to the tournament's quarterfinal.

The team finished second-round play in the six-team Group E with a 3-2 record, good enough to clinch a spot in the final eight.

It will have a day off on Tuesday before taking on either China, the Philippines or Japan Wednesday in a knockout quarterfinal matchup (depending on the result of the final second round game later Monday between China and Japan) to vie for a berth in the semifinals.

"It doesn't matter who we play in the quarterfinals. What is important is that we qualified," Taiwan head coach Huang Wan-lung was quoted as saying by FIBA Asia's website.

Huang Po-wei had 19 points and Chen Ying-chun had 16 points for Taiwan, which shot 52 percent from the field. But it was Taiwan's defense that was the key, as it limited its opponent to 30 percent shooting from the field and forced 12 turnovers.

Regardless of what happens in the quarterfinal, Taiwan will finish better than it did two years ago in the biennial tournament. Taiwan ranked a disappointing ninth place in 2008 after finishing fourth in 2006.

Report from FIBA Asia

TPE/LIB - Taipei carve out a fairy-tale win over Lebanon
SANA’A, Yemen (21st FIBA Asia U18 Championship): Chinese Taipei continued a triumphant day for East Asian teams over their fancied West Asian counterparts to throw open the calculations of the formbook in Group E of the Second Round with an 87-79 win against WABA U18 Champions Lebanon on Friday.

As a result, Lebanon are tied at 2-2 along with Taipei.

When Karem Mechref and Samer Ozeir scored seven and five – making amends for Ahmad Ibrahim’s initial struggle with rhythm – to put Lebanon ahead 28-13 by the end of the first quarter, the dice seemed to roll the West Asian way.

Lebanon continued to hold sway on the scoreboard, but the signs of the team struggling to maintain the momentum was obvious.

“Some of our players began to play rather selfish. This won’t help,” Lebanon coach Ghassan Sarkis was vituperative in his post game comments.

Taipei trailed Lebanon, kept clicking on Lebanon’s heels.

“The way they kept coming us was remarkable. More importantly, they were disciplined and seemed to play to a plan,” Sarkis lamented.

“Our players took some decisions, which didn’t go well with my instructions.”

Early in the fourth quarter, Cheng Tieh drove in to Taipei the lead for the first time in the game, and the signs for Lebanon were now beginning to get ominous.

Ibrahim ploughed a lone furrow in the fourth quarter for Lebanon accounting for 12 of his game-high 31 points in this period.

“It is a tribute to the character of our boys,” beamed Taipei coach Roman Huang.

“They were dedicated to get their act together after last night’s loss,” Huang said about the loss to Korea.

Hu Lung-mao was the highest scorer for Taipei with 16 points. The more crucial contributions came from Cheng Tieh  and Chen Ying-chun who both accounted for six points each in the fourth quarter.

Taipei take on Kazakhstan and Lebanon line up Iran on Monday.

TPE/KAZ - Taipei take charge early over Kazakhstan, enter QF
SANA’A, Yemen (21st FIBA Asia U18 Championship): Chinese Taipei scored a runaway 79-651 victory over Kazakhstan and booked their place in the Quarterfinals on Monday.

Taipei finished their Group E Second Round games with a 3-2 record and will go through to the last eight irrespective of the results to follow in the day. Those results will only determine the position Taipei finish in the Group and their Quarterfinal opponents.

“It doesn’t matter who we play in the Quarterfinals. What is important is we qualified,” said Chinese Taipei coach Roman Huang.

“In fact I didn’t even realize we had made the grade till you told us,” he gushed at the FIBA Asia media team.

“Even the boys were not aware of the situation. I didn’t want them to get distracted. We were focused on winning this game. That was the dominant thought in our mind,” said Huang.

Taipei scored the first six points, surged ahead 10-3 in the first ten minutes and built it to a substantial 25-13 lead 3 at the end of the first quarter.

Huang Po-wei had a 3/3 in field attempts for seven points in the first quarter to lead the Taipei charge.

Huang Po-wei went on to lead the game in scoring with 19 points. The youngster shot an incredible 85% in field attempts, including a 5/5 on the paint.

Taipei, thus scored back-to-back wins against teams taller, and considered more physical. Taipei had rallied to defeat WABA U18 champions Lebanon on Sunday.

“I think it is a tribute to the character and concentration of the boys. We believe in our strengths,” Huang said.

“And we are unwavering in doing what we need to do without bothering about the game situation. That is the key to these two wins,” he added.

Alimbek Orazov came off the bench and scored 17 points to lead the scoring for Kazakhstan.

FIBA Asia U18 Men - Taiwan lost to Korea 99-90

Story from FIBA Asia:

SANA’A, Yemen (21st FIBA Asia U18 Championship): Korea set the ball in motion early to take charge of the proceedings – and despite Chinese Taipei making a determined effort to cut back – went on to open their Second Round Group E campaign with a 90-99 win on Saturday.

Korea, who like their opponents, began the Second Round with a 1-1 win-loss record brought forward from the Preliminary Round, thus improved to 2-1.

Korea were ahead on the scoreboard right from the moment Jun Yl Kim drove in the lane early in the game.

Back to back three pointers interspersed with a free throw by Seonggon Moon put them ahead by a staggering 18 points with more than two minutes left in the first quarter. A position of command, Korea maintained for the remainder of the game.

Seonggon Moon succeeded in all his field attempts – thrice in three pointers and once on the paint – and fired in 11 points in the first quarter.

Moon went on and scored 19 points in the first half, before being rested for almost the entire second.

“He played his role very well. We needed him to give us a good start, which is what exactly he did,” said Korea coach Songgug Lee.

The much younger, and much taller, Seounghyun Lee held steady in inside play and he too had a 100% record in any scoring attempt in the first quarter –four times on the paint and twice from the foul-line – accounting for 10 points in the first quarter.

Seounghyun Lee eventually finished with a game-high 24 points, in a staggering 69% field record (11/16) with no long-range attempts.

“We know their style of play very well, and vice versa. We wanted to take control early, and luckily our shots went in the way we wanted,” said Songgug Lee.

“That made our lives easier for the rest of the game. But it looked much easier on the scoreboard than it did on the court,” he added.

“We hope to maintain the momentum,” Lee said looking ahead of the next game against defending champions Iran. Korea are right now riding high on 3-0 winning run.

“We were caught napping early,” rued Taipei coach Roman Huang.

“The early deficit proved a little too much. If you notice the final difference was almost half as much as we conceded in the first quarter,” Huang said.

“But I am happy we kept the pressure on them throughout and managed to cut back,” he said.

Chen Ying-chun’s 19 with a 67% success rate on the field was the highest for Taipei.

Taipei play WABA U18 Champions Lebanon on Sunday.