FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers: India clinch narrow win over Bahrain to advance

BAHRAIN came up short against India 77-81 last night in their opening game of the final West Asia qualifying tournament for the Fiba Asia Cup 2025. Arvind Muthu (187-G-2000) buried the go-ahead three-pointer to put the Indians in front, 78-77, with under two minutes remaining at Khalifa Sports City Arena in Isa Town. His basket deflated the Bahrainis’ spirits, as they had battled back after trailing for virtually the entire fourth quarter to take a brief 77-75 advantage late on following a Subah Hussain three-point play. But timely turnovers cost them in the closing moments, and India took advantage. Muin Hafeez (189-PG-1996) buried one of two free-throws with 14.5 seconds to play, and then two more charity shots from Krishnan pegged the final score. The Indians registered their second win in as many nights and thus wrapped up their campaign in the kingdom undefeated, while officially booking their ticket to this year’s Fiba Asia Cup. India had earlier triumphed in their opening assignment on Friday against Iraq. Hosts Bahrain, on the other hand, have one last chance to qualify for the continental showpiece, which will be held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia this August. They face off with the Iraqis tonight in a winner-take-all affair, set to be held at the same venue with a 10pm tip-off. This evening’s fixture will bring the West Asia qualifying competition to a close and complete the 16-team line-up for the Fiba Asia Cup 2025. In attendance during last night’s encounter were Bahrain Olympic Committee vice-president Shaikh Isa bin Ali bin Khalifa Al Khalifa and a number of Bahrain Basketball Association officials. India were the early aggressors and they took a double-digit lead in the first quarter. But Bahrain fought back and successive three-pointers from Ahmed Alderazi (172-PG-1990) and Subah Hussain brought them to within 20-25 at the end of the period. The visitors continued to stay in control in the second and rebuilt a lead of 12, 35-23, but a 10-0 run, sparked by two successive triples from Mustafa Hussain, got the home team back to within a single possession. A Mohammed Ameer step-back jump shot from the baseline later made it 36-39 as India took a slim lead into the interval. The Bahrainis led briefly early in the third but their opponents responded right away. India then gradually built their advantage and Harsh Dagar banked in a three-pointer right before the quarter buzzer to give them a 62-53 cushion with only the final quarter to play. There, India stayed ahead but the Bahrainis made one last stand. After Muin Hafeez scored to make it 75-71 with three minutes left, Mustafa Hussain answered from beyond the arc. Subah Hussain then made a lay-up and was fouled, but after sinking his bonus shot, Krishnan replied with his dagger three-pointer. Late turnovers by Wayne Chism and Mustafa Hussain then proved crucial for Bahrain, and India were able to hold on until the end. Dagar spearheaded the Indians’ attack with 28 big points, including a red-hot six three-pointers. Kanwar Sandhu added 15 while Pranav Prince scored 11. Palpreet Singh Brar also had key contributions of eight points and 16 rebounds in their win. For Bahrain, Mustafa Hussain and Mohammed Ameer were their only players in double figures, finishing with 30 and 11 points, respectively. Chism had nine points and 10 boards in the loss. India joined 14 other teams from Asia and Oceania who have assured their places in Jeddah. The others are Australia, Lebanon and Jordan – who were the top three teams of the last Fiba Asia Cup in 2022 – along with Japan, China, Iran, South Korea, New Zealand, the Philippines, Qatar, Syria, and the host Saudis. Chinese Taipei and Guam have also already booked their spots after finishing as the top two in the final qualifying tournament for East Asia. Bahrain are looking to make it to Asia’s premier men’s basketball championship for the 10th time.
Courtesy of: gdnonline.com