BASKETBALL/Taiwan's draw for FIBA Asia Cup basketball tournament confirmed

Taipei, April 9 (CNA) Taiwan's men's national basketball team will be playing against New Zealand, Iraq and the Philippines in Group D of the FIBA Asia Cup 2025 this summer as the groups for the 31st edition of the event were confirmed in Tuesday's draw in Doha.

The FIBA Asia Cup 2025 will be played at Jeddah, Saudi Arabia from Aug. 5 to Aug. 17, marking the first time the Gulf state is hosting the FIBA's flagship event in Asia since 1997.

The tournament will feature 16 teams divided into four groups of four teams each.

Taiwan, competing under the name Chinese Taipei, is in Group D with New Zealand, Iraq, Philippines.

Qatar, Australia, Korea and Lebanon will face off against each other in Group A, while Guam, Japan, Syria, and Iran will be in Group B and China, Jordan, India, and Saudi Arabia will be in Group C.

The teams will play a single-round robin format during the group phase and those finishing first in each group qualify directly for the quarter-finals.

The second- and third-placed teams will play an additional game to determine the other four teams that advance to the next round.

From there, the event becomes a single elimination tournament, according to FIBA (the International Basketball Federation), basketball's worldwide government body.

Defending champion Australia won its second Asia Cup in a row in Jakarta in 2022 after beating Lebanon in the final, while Taiwan finished 10th in 2022 with a 1-3 record and had to qualify to make the 2025 tournament.

Iraq also had to compete in qualifiers to reach the final 16, leaving New Zealand, currently ranked third in Asia, and the Philippines, ranked seventh, as the clear favorites in Group D.