AHMEDABAD (India) - Yahya Basaran capped off what had been a two-month stretch full of success by bagging home Tournament Most Valuable Player honors in the FIBA U18 Asia Cup 2026 on Sunday night.
The 2.14 M (7'0") center was awarded with the competition's highest individual award after the Emus' successful title defense following an 89-79 win over China in the Final at the Veer Savarkar Indoor Stadium.
He played a crucial role in their 'back-to-back' feat, scoring 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting on top of 4 rebounds and 2 blocks as he helped his side keep in step with their foes in the first half before their eventual breakaway.
Basaran finished with averages of 16.2 points, 12.0 rebounds, and 3.0 blocks en route to adding more prestigious hardware to his collection that already has a FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2026 bronze medal.
The 17-year-old was part of the Crocs squad that secured a podium finish in the June 27-July 5 showpiece held in Türkiye, a glory he shared with eventual U18 teammates Will Hamilton and four other players.
"It's a great feeling. I couldn't be prouder," said Basaran. "For the World Cup, it's a great honor. I think six boys from that team competed in this team as well, and we won the gold in Asia. Looking ahead for the World Cup."
In winning the plum, Basaran headlined the All-Star Five, which consists of teammate Jai Fa'ale, Team China lead forward Zhang Yizhaojie, Jackson Ball of third-placers New Zealand, and Yoon Jihoon of Korea.
Fa'ale top-scored for Australia in the Final with 19 points - spiked by a quartet of outside shots - as he triggered the critical 7-0 run for a 69-62 lead late in the third that put them ahead the rest of the way.
The athletic swingman finished as the team's leading bucket-getter of the tournament with an average of 17.2 points on 44.3-percent shooting from the field. He also had 4.0 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.0 steal.
Zhang led China in the title bout with 20 points and 5 rebounds and although they fell short of their goal, it was still a remarkable run for this batch as they brought the country back to the Final after 12 years.
It was also their first medal since winning the gold back in 2014 and Qatarm and the talented forward was a major reason behind this campaign with figures of 14.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 2.6 assists in 6 games of action.
This is already the second All-Star Five citation of Zhang after the FIBA U16 Asia Cup 2025, where China also made it all the way to the Big Dance only to lose to, coincidentally, the Aussies via big margin, 85-58.
The Junior Tall Blacks, meanwhile, salvaged a bronze medal after missing second straight, third Final appearance overall by overcoming a gritty Korea in the Third-Place Game, with Ball starring with 29 points.
Already a member of the men's team since the FIBA Asia Cup 2025 Qualifiers, the combo guard finished his last U18 Asia Cup as its third-best scorer with 20.8 points, alongside 3.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 1.7 steals.
Rounding up the selection is Yoon, who provided some of the best individual performances especially early in the event that ultimately enabled the Koreans to return to the Semi-Finals after waiting for four years.
The 1.82 M (5'11") guard poured 27 on Japan to lead his side straight to the Quarter-Finals, and then had 26 on Chinese Taipei to help book their 'Final Four' ticket. He normed 18.8 points and 6.8 assists in the whole tilt.
FIBA