In a tough Tuesday fixture at Tehran’s Azadi Sports Complex, the Iranian squad faced South Korean rivals though their efforts to overcome the East Asian rivals were unsuccessful.
Following a 12-12 tie at the end of the first quarter, Iranian basketballers took a 25-12 lead by the end of the first half.
However, Iran was beaten by South Korea in the last two quarters of the showdown to concede a close 83-84 defeat.
Iran’s outfit had previously bagged two victories over Indonesia and Kazakhstan while they were bested by Japan on the third day of the sportive event.
Host Iran’s two losses will make it difficult for them to cruise to higher stages of the Asian tournament as they might need to come out ahead of title-holder China in the second round.
In other Day 4 matches, Thailand, Kazakhstan, China, and Lebanon achieved mastery over the Philippines, Indonesia, Chinese Taipei as well as Japan, respectively.
Iranians will return to action today as they will take on Lebanon in their last group-stage encounter.
The 2016 FIBA Asia Under-18 Championship, which marks the 24th edition of the continental sports event, opened in the Iranian capital on July 22 and will wrap up on July 31.
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