AMMAN (Jordan) - Lebanon completed their 5-game sweep of the FIBA U18 Asia Cup 2026 WABA Qualifiers following a 74-73 victory over Iran in the virtual gold medal game last July 11 at the Prince Hamza Hall.
Roberto Rizk came through in the clutch, sinking the go-ahead bucket from underneath to erase a 73-72 deficit with about four seconds left as his response to Mohammad Shamsi Anbouhi's make in the play prior.
The young Team Melli missed from deep as time expired and the junior Cedars would erupt in celebration, as they brought the program to its fourth straight, 11th overall appearance in the biennial youth competition.
Former U16 star Johnny Sawma top-scored for the Lebanese with 23 points. Rizk finished with a double-double of 18 points and 14 rebounds, while Omar Machmouchi chipped in 11 points and 5 rebounds in the win.
This present batch are hoping to steer the team to the podium, something that hasn't been done since the 2006 edition in China where Lebanon took home the bronze - their first and lone medal in the contest.
Soheyl Soleyman Nezhad, on the other hand, led Iran with 26 points in the heartbreaking defeat as their bid of sweeping the tilt got spoiled, and will instead settle for a runner-up finish with a 4-1 win-loss record.
Still, Iran are headed to the FIBA U18 Asia Cup 2026 in August 13-23, marking their 16th consecutive appearance in the event they've won a total of 3 times, the most recent of which was in 2016 at home in Tehran.
They're coming in together with Lebanon and Syria, as the top 3 finishers of the recent WABA Qualifiers will book themselves tickets to the highly anticipated showpiece to be held in Ahmedabad, India.
Syria finished 3rd with a 3-2 record to make their way into the tournament for the first time since 2022 in Iran, where they finished at 10th in the edition eventually ruled by Korea for championship no. 4.
With Lebanon, Iran, and Syria joining the fray, 14 teams are now in the picture, with the 2 others to complete the 16-team ensemble coming from the Gulf via the GBA Qualifiers set on July 17-22 in Doha, Qatar.
FIBA