Nagoya Asian Games: South Korea held off a late Japanese rally to win the women's basketball gold medal 75-70 at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games in Nagoya on Saturday, while China beat Chinese Taipei 77-64 for bronze.
South Korea led by 19 points at halftime, but Japan clawed back to within two, 70-72, with 15 seconds left before South Korea closed it out at the free-throw line.
South Korea's Lee Hae-ran led all scorers with 24 points and nine rebounds, while Kang Lee-seul added 21 points and seven rebounds. Japan's Haru Owaki nearly posted a triple-double with 23 points, 13 rebounds and 5 assists, reports Xinhua.
"We built a big lead early on, but they came back quite a lot in the second half. I don't think we maintained our concentration very well... but in the end, we won, so I'm extremely happy," Lee said.
Japan's Miyu Okamoto pointed to a slow start. "If we had a better start, I think we would have had a much better chance of winning," she said.
In the bronze medal game, China overcame a cold shooting night from deep, 1 of 10 from behind the arc in the first half, to pull away in the third quarter behind 2.23-meter centre Zhang Ziyu, before Luo Xinyu, Tang Ziting and Zhang Manman sealed it with fourth-quarter threes.
Chen Mingling led China with 20 points, with Zhang and Luo adding 14 and 12, respectively. Chinese Taipei's Lin Yu-ting had a team-high 15 points, and Chen Yen-yu scored 11.
In the bronze medal game, China overcame a cold shooting night from deep, 1 of 10 from behind the arc in the first half, to pull away in the third quarter behind 2.23-meter centre Zhang Ziyu, before Luo Xinyu, Tang Ziting and Zhang Manman sealed it with fourth-quarter threes.
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China's head coach Gong Luming struck a reflective note afterwards. "We came here to win gold, and we didn't get it. But for a young team like this one, chasing a shared goal together means something," he said.