ULAANBAATAR (Mongolia)- Korea displayed overwhelming superiority in every department powering their way to a 96-48 win in the Qualifications to Quarter-Finals game over Kazakhstan at the M Bank Arena on Thursday to take their seemingly appointed place in the FIBA U16 Asia Cup 2025 Quarter-Finals.
Coach Ryu Youngjoon’s team will need all that panache and probably little more when they line up for their Friday’s last eight clash against three-time defending champions Australia with a ticket to the FIBA U17 World Cup 2026 on line.
Lee Seunghyeon and Chu Yudam were the spearheads of the Korean campaign, as the East Asian powerhouse aimed to reclaim their top-eight finish which they have now achieved in all the editions of the competition, barring the previous one which they skipped.
Lee was on fire from the field with a 5/8 rate for 10 points and was a steadying presence under the boards with 5 collections in the opening ten minutes and went on to wrap up the day with 8/12 field shooting for 18 points, missing a double-double by one rebound
Chu Yudam in contrast relied on flamboyance to compensate for profligacy and powered 9 of his game-high 20 points in the opening quarter.
Lee and Chu combined to succeeded in back-to-back attempts, and capped by Min Seungbin’s twin successes from the foul-stripe, Korea built an overwhelming lead to close the first quarter. A lead that only burgeoned as the game progressed.
For Kazakhstan playing in this competition after a gap of 12 years and making the Final Phase for the first time in their history, Aman Tlembay produced a feisty 19 points and 14 rebounds to ensure they left the competition with their heads held high.
FIBA