Indonesia Challenges Lebanon In The FIBA Asia Women's Semifinals On Friday

The head coach of the Indonesian women's basketball team, Lin Chi Wen (right) cheers for point guard Agustin Gradita Retong (Photo: Antara)

JAKARTA - The Indonesian women's basketball national team will face Lebanon in the semifinals of the 2021 FIBA Asia Women's Cup Division B after eliminating Iran in a qualifying match in Amman, Jordan, Wednesday local time.

Against Iran, which failed to record a single win in the preliminary round of Group A, Indonesia won with a score of 76-68.

The double record was recorded by Indonesian naturalized players Kimberley Pierre-Louis and center Gabriel Sophia, each with 19 points and 11 rebounds and 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Meanwhile, power forward Yuni Anggraeni and shooting guard Nathania Claresta Orville both contributed 11 points for Indonesia's victory.

In the Iranian camp, there are only two players who reached double digits, namely Shadi Abdolvand with 17 points followed by Edna Eissalanjangi who scored 16 points.

Launching Antara, Thursday, Indonesia's performance this time was better than when it lost to the host Jordan the day before, especially in terms of the conversion of an open shot attempt which reached an accuracy rate of 45 percent.

Left behind 10-12 when closing the first quarter, Indonesia improved their performance in the second quarter by picking up 28 points.

Agustin Gradita Retong's triple shot with 18 seconds remaining, followed by a jump shot from Pierre-Louis gave Indonesia a 38-25 lead over Iran in the first half of the match.

The concentration of Lin Chi Wen's foster children decreased slightly in the third quarter so that Indonesia's advantage was cut to only 58-54 when entering the fourth quarter.

The additional 18 points recorded in the final quarter were enough to lock Indonesia's victory with a final score of 76-68 over Iran.

Indonesia has a day's rest to recover its fitness and prepare to face Lebanon, who qualified as winners of Group A, in the semifinals which will take place on Friday.

2021 FIBA Asia Cup Division B fights for a promotion ticket to replace India, which was relegated last month from Division A.