The Iranian men’s national basketball team has defeated Japan at the 2016 William Jones Cup in Taiwan.
Iran snatched a narrow victory on Saturday, overcoming the Japanese rivals 73-65 in a match staged at the Hsinchuang Gymnasium in New Taipei City.
The achievement came after the Iranian basketball players suffered three straight defeats from South Korea outfit (50-67), Chinese Taipei A team (63-66) and Mighty Sports of the Philippines (73-80) over the course of the past three days.
The Iranian sportsmen will return to action on Sunday to play against India.
The 2016 William Jones Cup started in Taiwan on July 23 and will conclude on July 31. The event is a top-level international basketball tournament of FIBA Asia.
Iran is preparing for the 2016 FIBA Asia Challenge, which will open on home soil on September 9 and will run through September 18. This tournament will serve as the first step in determining qualifiers for the 2017 FIBA Asia Cup.
The 2017 FIBA Asia Championship, which will be the 29th continental basketball championship in Asia, will bring together teams from both FIBA Asia and FIBA Oceania for the first time.