SEREMBAN (Malaysia) - Australia and Chinese Taipei authored different tales of victories to raise the curtains of Division A competitions in the FIBA U16 Women's Asia Cup 2025, Monday at the Karisma Arena.
The Sapphires opened their bid for unprecedented history with an easy 123-42 triumph over the Philippines, while Chinese Taipei held on to escape Korea by way of an 88-83 decision in the all-East Asian affair.
Shooting for a 'four-peat,' the Aussies went off to a 14-4 start before building a 33-12 lead to end the opening frame, and the match would never be in question as they cruised to a dominant start to the tournament.
Five players scored in double figures in the win, with Marianela Fakalata leading the pack with 19 points, spiked by three triples - including one that put the team past the century mark, 101-32, to open the fourth.
Madison Ryan produced 17 points as she was crucial in their first-half assault. Sophie Richardson and Laura Seiz, on the other hand, finished with 15 points apiece as the tandem spearheaded the bench mob.
Richardson herself was responsible in the early breakaway by scoring 10 of her points in the first quarter alone, including a pair of triples, as she nearly outscored the Philippines by her lonesome.
Eden Catip added 12 points as all 12 players of Coach Tom Garlepp made at least 2 points in the win that saw the squad shoot 51-percent from the floor and collect 70 rebounds - 16 of which came from Jemyma Manyok.
Leading the Philippines were Makena Ramos and Ryanna Roman with 16 and 10 points, respectively, in the defeat that handed the team from Southeast Asia a harsh welcome in their Division A debut.
Meanwhile, Lin Nian-Zhen finished with 26 points and 9 rebounds as she helped Chinese Taipei repel their Korean counterparts' spirited comeback in which the latter chopped a 20-point lead to just a field goal.
They did as much twice inside the final 1:12 and looked to at least tie things up with only 12 seconds remaining, but their attempt at a stop did not work and were way too late in fouling to freeze the clock.
Korea did foul Lin but she was quick enough to hoist up a shot, and the ball actually trickled into the basket with only one-tenths of a second left to play. She then made the bonus, thus settling the final count.
Their escape also helped preserve the efforts of the others such as Chang Yu-Tung, who had 21 points and 8 rebounds. Ditto with Gao Zi-Qiao and Feng Chia-Ping, who produced 16 and 10 points, respectively.
Korea, on the other hand, were led by Kim Damhee with 25 points and 16 rebounds in the loss.
Han Yedam came through with 19 points, which included a quartet of threes, and 5 rebounds. Kim Jimin made 15 points while Park Jia added 10 points and 8 rebounds in the fightback that fell just short in the end.
Group A action resumes Tuesday, September 23, with Australia and Korea opening the day with a meeting at 11:30 local time before Chinese Taipei and the Philippines square off at 14:00.
FIBA