2013 FIBA Asia Championship: Japan cuts down Hong Kong in the second half

(Updated 5:06pm) Japan used a strong second-half attack to best the debuting Hong Kong, 76-59, Friday at the MOA Arena, in Group B play of the 2013 FIBA Asia Championship.

Group B actually only has three teams instead of the normal four, which means all of them will advance to the next round. This is due to the fact that FIBA Asia was unable to find a replacement for Lebanon, which was suspended prior to the competition.

Japan left Hong Kong in the dust as JR Sakuragi and Kosuke Takeuchi carried them during a 14-2 surge in the third period. Naoto Tsuji was deadly from outside, making three-pointers to help Japan equalize their card at 1-1 after they dropped a 75-74 loss to Qatar yesterday.

Tsuji led his team with 17 points, shooting 4-of-8 from long range. Takeuchi added 17 points and seven rebounds. Sakuragi and Kosuke Kanamaru tallied 10 points apiece, while the former collected 12 rebounds.

“We had a tough loss yesterday, we disappointed as a team, so we wanted to win,” said starting power forward Sean Itchioka. “Our starters picked it up in the third and it carried over to the fourth.”

“We didn't play any good defense in the first half but we improved on it. We played Hong Kong in the East Asia qualifiers and we knew they were a good team but we did not have and information on players 10 and 13 [Chan Yik Lun and Wong Chun Wai, respectively],” said Japan head coach Kimikazu Suzuki.

“This is a long tournament so we tried to give our players some rest. It's not because we considered Hong Kong a weak team but because we want to preserve our players for the next round,” he added.

The first quarter was a hotly-contested duel between both teams. After a slow start, Hong Kong found their range as Wong Chun Wai and Chan Yik Lun struck from long range, seizing a 13-8 lead. But Naoto Tsuji one-upped them, scattering three treys and a driving and-one, 23-18, with under a minute to play.

Wong countered with a triple to break a 15-5 run, and then converted a long heave as time expired, matching an Atsuya Ota layup. He was responsible for Hong Kong's last nine points, to trail by a point, 25-24, after the first period.

Hong Kong went back to Wong, and he delivered by tying the game early in the second with his fourth trey, 27-27. Japan though gained some separation as they looked to attack the basket. A Kosuke Takeuchi slam capped a 9-5 run, 34-29, halfway through the quarter.

Hanging tough against their foes, Hong Kong found a way to score inside. Consecutive makes by Lau Tung Leung and Duncan Reid kept them close, and a three-pointer from Chan Siu Wing briefly gave them a 40-39 lead with under two minutes left. But Makoto Heijima had the final say, scoring with under 30 ticks left to preserve a 41-39 lead for Japan at halftime.

Japan shot 13-of-26 (50 percent) through the first half, counting 4-of-7 (57 percent) three-pointers. Hong Kong was 16-of-37 (43 percent) while shooting 8-of-15 (53 percent) from deep. However, they didn't attempt a single free throw in the first two quarters, while in contrast, Japan were 11-of-14 (79 percent).

After the break, both teams went back-and-forth as Wong and Reid teamed up for Hong Kong, while JR Sakuragi cleaned up misses for Japan, 50-49. Japan though leaned on their superior front court to pull away, as Sakuragi and Takeuchi imposed their will on the block. Heijima meanwhile added a pair of breakaway buckets to complete a 14-2 run.

Hong Kong had only one field goal in the last five minutes, until a Szeto Wai Kit put-back with 42 seconds left, putting the score at 64-53, in favor of Japan, after three quarters.

Thoroughly gassed in the fourth quarter, Hong Kong was unable to make a serious dent against Japan's lead. Li Kim Wong gave them their first basket in the period, 68-56, which was quickly extinguished by another Tsuji trey. Japan had their share of offensive struggles but were securely ahead, as Hong Kong never trailed less than 14 points for the rest of the way.

Japan finished the game shooting 29-of-62 (47 percent) from the floor, including 6-of-15 (40 percent) from long-range. Hong Kong fared worse at 23-of-69 (33 percent), counting 8-of-24 (33 perent) from beyond the arc.

Japan also dominated in the paint, outscoring Hong Kong 34-16 in the shaded area.

Hong Kong's Wong Chun Wai led all scorers with 23 points, while Duncan Reid registered 10 points and seven rebounds. - AMD, GMA News


The scores:

Japan 76 - Tsuji 17, Takeuchi 12, Sakuragi 10, Kanamaru 10, Hiejima 6, Tanaka 6, Ota 4, Watanabe 4, Ichioka 3, Kurihara 2, Sakurai 2, Matsui 0, Watanabe 0

Hong Kong 59 - Wong 23, Reid 10, Li 9, Y. Chan 8, S. Chan 5, Tung Leung Lau 2, Szeto 2, Tsz Lai Lau 0, Fong 0

Quarter scoring: 25-24, 41-40, 64-53, 76-59