Okinawa, Japan, September 2, 2023: FIBA World Cup 2023 co-hosts Japan defeated Cape Verde 80-71 in Okinawa on Saturday, September 2 to reach their second consecutive Olympic men's basketball tournament, Olympics.com reports.
Having missed all seven of his shots from the field against Venezuela on Thursday, Josh Hawkinson was back to his dominant best and spent all 40 minutes on the court as he posted 29 points and seven rebounds.
Tominaga Keisei also played a key role off the bench, knocking down 22 points including six three-pointers from eight attempts.
Japan went into the match knowing victory would assure them of the highest finish of an Asian team at the tournament and the sole Paris 2024 qualifying spot for Asia on offer.
Trailing by two after the first quarter, the Akatsuki exploded into life in the second as they took it 33-18 for a 50-37 half-time lead.
They extended their advantage to 18 going into the final period and, despite scoring just seven points in the last 10 minutes, held off the African side to book their return to the Games.
Victorious head coach Tom Hovasse said afterwards: "These are the moments where you really get a chance to prove yourself, but also improve yourself. That's the mindset all of our guys have. We've got some young guys that really stepped up.
"I think we showed the world what we can do. Now we're on everybody's radar, we're on everybody's maps. That's a big step."
Earlier, South Sudan made history by qualifying for their first Olympic basketball tournament.