(Asiad) S. Korea beats Saudi Arabia to open men's basketball tournament

South Korea secured a dominant 82-66 victory over Saudi Arabia to kick off the men's basketball tournament at the 20th Asian Games in Japan on Thursday. Lee Hyun-jung led the South Korean charge with 23 points off the bench, sinking eight of fifteen shots. Despite trailing early, the Korean team never trailed in the first Group A contest at Aichi International Arena in Nagoya.

Marzouq Al-Muwallad led Saudi Arabia with 18 points. Both teams were tied at 17-17 before a seven-point surge from South Korea shifted the momentum. South Korea stretched their lead in the second quarter, holding Saudi Arabia to only four points in the early minutes before scoring twelve themselves to widen the gap to 36-21. Despite a late South Korean slowdown, the game remained largely uneventful until the final quarter.

The teams traded bricks, with South Korea managing just eight points from 3-of-20 shooting. Ultimately, South Korea's win set them up for their next matchup against Indonesia on Friday at 4 p.m. and a final round game against Japan on Sunday at 7 p.m.