Day 3 fixtures of the 24th round of the Asian tournament were held on Sunday in Terhan’s Azadi Sports Complex where the Iranian squad was downed by Japanese rivals despite earlier wins over Indonesia and Kazakhstan.
National junior team managed to have the upper hand (20-18) only in the second quarter of the showdown while it was Japan who chalked up victories in the first (26-23), third (23-13) and fourth (24-23) finally bolting to an 81-77 win.
In other Day 3 matches, Chinese Taipei, China, Lebanon and South Korea came out victorious as they trounced India, the Philippines, Indonesia as well as Kazakhstan, respectively.
Iranian players will return to action today as they are scheduled to take on South Korea.
The 2016 FIBA Asia Under-18 Championship, which marks the 24th edition of the continental sports event, began in the Iranian capital on July 22 and will conclude on July 31.
The Islamic Republic of Iran is drawn in Group B of the preliminary round of the sports event, and has joined Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, Lebanon and South Korea.
Group A comprises China, Chinese Taipei, India, Iraq, the Philippines and Thailand.
HA/3722571