BANGKOK (Thailand) - Only one can realize their dream of belonging to the region's best as Lebanon and Kazakhstan lay it all on the line in the FIBA U18 Women's Asia Cup 2026-Division B Final this Sunday.
Game time is set at 18:30 local time at the Nimibutr Stadium, with both of the proud programs locked in on their goal of finishing their own stories after suffering heartbreaks during previous editions of the tilt.
The young Cedars, for one, are hoping to get the job done this time after their attempt of getting promoted to Division A during the 2024 competitions in China got foiled by the Philippines in the Final, 95-64.
Lebanon lost to the same squad that beat them in the Group Phase as familiarity didn't play any factor in at least making it a close bout, allowing their foes to complete a 4-game sweep and reach the top level.
That's why Elissa Abou Jaoude, who was part of that batch together with star guard Lara Al Nakib, is bent on erasing the bitter memories of Shenzhen now that the opportunity has presented itself.
“We lost against the Philippines, which was a really good team," she said after their 77-54 win over Indonesia in the Semi-Finals. "Honestly we really wanted to win it back then. Now we’re coming again to win it."
"We need to win it, especially for the players that played that year but couldn’t make it now. There’s me and another teammate who played that year, and honestly we’re coming back for revenge." she added.
But it's not just the Lebanese that are coming into the Final hungry for revenge.
Kazakhstan actually have some score to settle with their WABA counterparts. It was only during the Group Phase's final day last Wednesday when these two locked horns, and it didn't go well for the pride or CABA.
At the time, the Kazakhs were eyeing to complete a 3-game sweep of Group B to reach the Semi-Finals outright, but fell short after dropping a close one, 66-59, with Al Nakib and Joudy El Harake conniving in the clutch.
With that, they came second in the pool instead and had to go through the Qualification to Semi-Finals, in which they directed all their frustrations to hosts Thailand, 62-34, to reach the penultimate round.
Of course, Kazakhstan would've preferred to sweep their into the Semi-Finals, but Coach Aziza Temirgazy believes that her team's loss to Lebanon should equip themselves better in their upcoming rematch.
"We are ready for this team. We are ready to do this," she said after their 60-36 win over the erstwhile unbeaten India. "I'd say that our previous defeat has helped us well. We are getting ready, and we are very focused."
Now, all that's left is for the two protagonists to duke it out.
Meanwhile, opening Sunday's games at 16:00 local time is the Third-Place Game between Indonesia and India in a clash between familiar foes, having faced one another just last Sunday where the latter won, 79-46.
It would actually be their fourth meeting overall at this very level, having played against each other thrice in the past, with the SEABA representatives owning the head-to-head advantage with a 2-1 record.
FIBA