S. Korea Cruises Past Indonesia to Reach Women's Basketball Semifinals, to Face China Next

The South Korean women's national basketball team defeated Indonesia to secure a spot in the semifinals of the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Games.

Led by head coach Park Su-ho, the women's basketball team beat Indonesia 101-59 in the Asian Games quarterfinals held at the Aichi International Arena in Nagoya, Japan, on the 24th.

With this win, South Korea advanced to the semifinals scheduled for the 25th, where they will face China.

South Korea has advanced to the semifinals in every single edition of the Asian Games women's basketball tournament since its debut at the 1974 Tehran Games.

Except for a fourth-place finish at the 2004 Doha Games, South Korea has won a medal every time, including a silver medal won by the unified inter-Korean team in 2018.

At this tournament, the team is aiming for its fifth Asian Games gold medal overall, following previous titles in 1978, 1990, 1994, and 2014.

With the men's national basketball team earlier reclaiming the top spot for the first time in 12 years, expectations have grown for a "combined gold medal" sweep.

The women's national team finished first in Group C with three consecutive wins after defeating Malaysia, Mongolia, and Taiwan in the group stage, and continued their smooth run by decisively beating Indonesia in their first knockout match.

Their next opponent, China, is the defending champion that holds the record for the most Asian Games women's basketball titles with seven, and won consecutive championships at the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang and 2023 Hangzhou Games.

China is also ranked higher than South Korea at 7th in the FIBA rankings compared to South Korea's 14th, and South Korea trails in their head-to-head record against China with 26 wins and 45 losses, making for a challenging matchup ahead.

Having a much higher FIBA ranking than Indonesia (60th) and holding a 5-0 advantage in their past head-to-head matches, South Korea navigated today's game relatively easily, fueled by the early performance of Lee So-hee (BNK), who has been showcasing a sharp scoring touch in this tournament.

Leading 17-11 in the first quarter, consecutive three-pointers by Kang Lee-seul (Woori Bank) and Huh Ye-eun (KB) widened the gap to 23-11 with about two and a half minutes remaining, and Choi Yi-sam (BNK) also sank an outside shot to make it 26-13.

With six three-pointers exploding in the first quarter alone to take a 28-18 lead, South Korea built momentum in the mid-second quarter through a layup by Huh Ye-eun, a basket in the paint by Hong Yu-sun (Shinhan Bank) following a steal by Huh, and a drive by Lee Hae-ran (Samsung Life), pulling ahead to 46-25 and maintaining a 52-30 lead by halftime.

In the second half, South Korea went scoreless for about the first three minutes and allowed a brief comeback as their concentration in defense and rebounding wavered.

However, they regained their rhythm late in the third quarter, rattling off eight unanswered points from a 59-40 score to pull away comfortably, and closed out the quarter at 71-43 with a buzzer-beater by Kang Lee-seul.

South Korea opened the fourth quarter with seven consecutive combined points from Jin An (Hana Bank), Choi Yi-sam, and Jung Hyun (Hana Bank), sealing the victory early and preparing for the semifinals to be held the next day.

All 12 players named to the roster scored for South Korea in the match.

Choi Yi-sam contributed evenly with 16 points and 5 rebounds, Jin An with 12 points and 6 assists, Lee So-hee with 12 points and 5 rebounds, Jung Hyun with 12 points, Huh Ye-eun with 11 points and 8 assists, and Kang Lee-seul with 11 points.

Forward Lee Hae-ran, who was sidelined during the final group match due to poor condition, returned to action, playing about 13 minutes and recording 4 points and 4 rebounds.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.