IRAN pulled off one of the most dramatic comebacks in FIBA Asia Cup 2025 history and dealt Chinese Taipei a brutal heartbreaker, 78-75, to barge into the semifinals of the continental tournament early Thursday in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Team Melli battled back from a deep 21-point deficit late in the first half to complete the improbable win and arrange a titanic showdown with two-time reigning champion Australia in the Final Four set Saturday.
All things appeared lost for the Iranians when they fell behind 21-42 with 1:25 left in the second quarter on a floater by Mohammad Al Bachir Gadiaga. It also didn't help that starting point guard Sina Vahedi was in early foul trouble during the quarterfinals match at the King Abdullah Sports City.
But Iran found a way to climb back from the jaws of defeat behind 6-foot-7 forward Mohammad Amini and 35-year-old Arzalan Kazemi, as they turned things around in the second half to complete the thrilling comeback.
Amini did most of the damage against Chinese Taipei with 30 points and 11 rebounds, while igniting a 17-5 run in the fourth quarter that tied the game at 69 with three minutes remaining.
His last four free throws, including two in the final 12 seconds sealed the deal for Team Melli.
“At halftime, we had a long talk, and we changed the approach,” said coach Alex Manolopoulos. “We had to start from defense, to play aggressively possession by possession. We knew we will get our shots, and this time, we will make our shots. For the second half, we played to our maximum.”
Vahedi added 21 points and Kazemi had seven and 12 boards to frustrate Chinese Taipei in the endgame.
“Maybe we deserved to win, but this is basketball,” said Chinese Taipei coach Gianluca Tuccil, as he grappled for words following the sorry loss.
“But I am still proud of every single player, every single member of our staff, of our federation.”
Lin Ting-Chien finished with 21 points on 3-of-7 shooting from deep, while Ying-Chun Chen added 11 for a hot-shooting Chinese Taipei side, which converted 80-percent of its shots from three-point range (12-of-15).
The team got off to a 10-0 start and led at the half, 42-26.
Still, it wasn’t enough for Chinese Taipei, as Lin's potential game-tying three at the buzzer misfired, ending the their bid to make the semis for the first time since the 2013 edition of the meet back in 2013 in Manila.
It finished the tournament with a 3-2 record including huge wins over Gilas Pilipinas and Jordan.
The scores:
IRAN 78 – Amini 30, Vahedi 21, Kazemi 7, Zangeneh 6, Rezaeifar 3, Sheikhi 0, Heydari 0, Aghajanpour 0.
CHINESE TAIPEI 75 – Lin 22, Chen 13, A. Hinton 11, Gadiaga 10, R. Hinton 9, Gilbeck 7, Ma 3, KC Chen 0, Tseng 0, Gao 0, Liu 0.
Quarters: 11-24; 26-42; 52-64; 78-75.
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