Qatar return to FIBA Asia Cup after eight years following a masterful 92-71 victory over Kazakhstan
Published: 21 Feb 2025 - 10:28 pm | Last Updated: 21 Feb 2025 - 10:41 pm
Astana, Kazakhstan: Nearly a decade of waiting has finally come to an end after Qatar officially sealed their place in the FIBA Asia Cup 2025 following a masterful 92-71 victory over Kazakhstan, Friday night at the Jekpe-Jek Saraiy.
The team from the Gulf took control of the game early before breaking away come the second chapter, never to look back as they went on to book their return trip to the prestigious continental showpiece after eight long years.
The last time they qualified was in the 2017 edition in Lebanon, finishing 13th among the 16 teams in the tournament eventually lorded over by the debuting Australia.
Now, they are bound for their 11th appearance in the Asia Cup, looking of course to shock the competition in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia as they continue their gear-up toward the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2027 which the country will be hosting.
Qatar leaned on a balanced attack to secure the important win, with star guard Mike Lewis leading the way with 19 points on a perfect 4-of-4 clip from three-point distance - including one to beat the first half buzzer for a commanding 45-29 lead.
Tyler Harris and Ndoye Seydou finished with identical numbers of 14 points and 9 rebounds as the two shone bright in sharing frontcourt duties.
Moustafa Fouda chipped in 14 points as well alongside 6 assists in the win that saw the visiting team shoot 48.3-percent from the field, thanks to their 21 dimes.
With the triumph, the Qataris have now stretched their winning streak to three in the Asia Cup Qualifiers, going unbeaten thus far since Hakan Demir took over the men's program's head coaching reins just prior to Window 2 last November.
One of his first memorable moments with the squad was their thrilling 78-77 overtime squeaker against coincidentally his ex-team in Iran in that window.
It was their first win against Team Melli in almost two decades. But Friday night's successful road trip should be up there as well, for it brought them back to the Asia Cup after missing the 2022 competitions held in Jakarta, Indonesia.
Qatar have improved to 3-2 in Group E to go above .500 for the first time in the ongoing Qualifiers, and can wrap up their campaign with another W against India - the same team they beat to start the streak - on February 24 in Doha.
Vadim Chsherbak, meanwhile, had 13 points to lead Kazakhstan, who fell to 2-3 with the loss and will need to beat Iran at home to stay afloat.
The Iranians have earlier clinched the first Asia Cup berth from the group by beating India and now, Qatar have followed suit after their own convincing win.
With this, the Blue Wolves and India can finish third at best in the pool, which if one of them does will bring them to the FIBA Asia Cup 2025 Qualifying Tournaments.
