In a brilliant start to the campaign, India beat Iraq in Group H of the FIBA Asia Cup 2025 Qualifiers for third-placed teams. The Indian men’s basketball team beat Iraq 97-77 at the Khalifa Sports City on Friday.
The win means India now inches a step closer to the FIBA Asia Cup 2025 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia in August.
India took the lead in the second quarter after a 30-all tie in the game’s first 10 minutes before pulling away in the third.
Muin Bek Hafeez was India’s top-scorer with 17 points, knocking down five three-pointers while also grabbing six rebounds. Pranav Prince produced an all-around performance, finishing with 12 points, nine rebounds and four assists.
Harsh Dagar contributed 13 points as well as six assists and Arvind Krishnan chipped in with 12 points. Palpreet Singh Brar (11 points) and Arvinder Singh (10 points) also made valuable contributions off the bench.
“I’m pleased with the outcome, but even more so with how we played. Some strong points: we had 22 assists and only eight turnovers. That was a big goal of ours. We need to rebound the ball a little better but overall, I thought we played a great game. And, we played well in every quarter,” said India Head Coach Scott Flemming.
Following this convincing victory, India now needs to win its final game against Bahrain on Saturday night to complete a sweep of Group H and, more importantly, to formally advance to the tournament proper.
The Indian basketball team which is in Group E from the Qualifiers’ First Round, is making its 11th consecutive appearance in FIBA Asia Cup 2025.
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FIBA Asia Cup 2025 Qualifiers: Participating countries
West Region
- Iran
- Jordan
- Lebanon
- Kazakhstan
- Saudi Arabia
- India
- Syria
- Bahrain
East Region
- Australia
- New Zealand
- China
- South Korea
- Philippines
- Japan
- Chinese Taipei
- Indonesia
