Fans pick Group B as FIBA Asia Cup 2017 Group of Death

BEIRUT (FIBA Asia Cup 2017) - The poll is over and the results are in - Asian basketball fans picked Group B as the toughest group at the upcoming FIBA Asia Cup 2017.

FIBA ran a poll a few days ago to see which group fans felt could be called the proverbial "Group of Death," and they chose Group B.

It should not really be much of a surprise, since the two protagonists in the FIBA Asia Championship 2015 Final - China and Philippines - are both in that group along with Gulf sub-zone champions Qatar and rising West Asia power Iraq. None of those teams are pushovers, and fans can count on every game being played with the highest levels of intensity.

A total of nearly 6,500 fans voted on the poll, with Group B garnering 3,769 votes. Group A, which is composed of Iran, Jordan, Syria and India - was second with 2,147 votes followed by Group C and Group D, which got 409 and 168 votes respectively.

The FIBA Asia Cup 2017 is hosted by Lebanon and will be played from 8-20 August, featuring the top 14 teams in Asia joined by Australia and New Zealand from Oceania.

The Group Stage of the tournament will be played in a round robin format, with the sixteen (16) teams divided into four (4) groups of four (4) teams. Every team will take on its three (3) opponents in its respective group.

The top three (3) teams from each group will then advance to the Second Phase, where they will be they be divided into two groups (E & F).

The tournament will be played in a knockout format from the Quarter-Finals onwards (Quarter-Finals, Semi-Finals, Final).

FIBA