Qatar U18 Basketball Team Bow Out of FIBA U18 Asia Cup After Narrow Defeat to Japan

alt
August 20, 2026
basketball
feed type icon
20-August-2026

Qatar U18 Basketball Team Bow Out of FIBA U18 Asia Cup After Narrow Defeat to Japan

New Delhi:  Qatar’s U18 national basketball team saw their FIBA U18 Asia Cup campaign come to an end after a narrow 80–75 defeat to Japan in the qualification playoff for the quarterfinals in Ahmedabad, India, on Thursday.

Qatar produced one of their strongest performances of the tournament and remained in contention until the closing stages, but Japan prevailed by five points to secure a place in the quarterfinals.

Japan made the stronger start and took the opening quarter 20–13. Qatar responded well in the second period, improving defensively and showing greater organization in attack to win the quarter 22–18 and reduce the deficit to three points at halftime.

The Qatari team maintained their momentum after the break, taking the third quarter 20–17 as they continued to put pressure on Japan and kept the contest finely balanced heading into the final period.

With the match on the line, Japan proved more clinical in the decisive moments, winning the fourth quarter 25–20 to seal an 80–75 victory and advance to the last eight.

Qatar captain Abdullah Yassin Mousa delivered an outstanding individual performance, scoring a game-high 46 points, while Kaiman Tsunioka led Japan with 19 points.

Qatar reached the qualification playoff after finishing third in Group C with four points. They began their campaign with a 94–69 defeat to Iran and lost 118–66 to China before bouncing back with an emphatic 90–43 victory over Sri Lanka.

The national squad featured Abdullah Yassin Mousa, Azzam Mohammed Yaken, Tamim Ashraf Abouissa, Ziad Al Bitar, Moaz Omar Mousa, Ziad Tamer Al Johari, Mohammed Saeed Badri, Mahmoud Tamer Ibrahim, Amer Ibrahim Mousa, Owen Ikina, Youssef Walid Abdelqader, and Shahi Mohammed.

The tournament provided Qatar’s young players with valuable continental experience against some of Asia’s leading basketball nations, including Iran, China, and Japan.

The team was led by Algerian head coach Mounir Ben Ghalla, assisted by Hashem Zaidan, while Kenan was responsible for physical preparation and Seif Al Din Al Hamandi oversaw medical and rehabilitation duties. The delegation was headed by Saadoun Sabah Al Kuwari, Secretary General of the Qatar Basketball Federation and Director of National Teams.

The FIBA U18 Asia Cup also serves as a qualifier for the FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup 2027 in Pardubice, Czech Republic, with the four semifinalists earning qualification for the global tournament.