Nagoya, Japan, September 20, 2026: Hopes were high for the host nation after making the final for the first time in 64 years, but Korea defied the partisan crowd and left Japan still waiting for its first-ever Asian Games gold in men’s basketball.
Lee Hyunjung scored 13 of his game-high 27 points in the third quarter when Korea turned up the heat after a cold-shooting first half by both teams, before cruising to a 67-57 victory on Sunday for its first Asian Games gold since 2014 and fifth overall.
Lee, who has played the past two seasons professionally in Japan’s B.League, also topped the stats in rebounds with 18, while Lee Junghyun chipped in 14 points and dished off seven assists before the crowd of 7,360 at Aichi International Arena.
Japan, which lost to Korea in the group stage but defeated China in the semifinals to make the final, was its own worst enemy in the fourth quarter as it pressed to turn the tide, making just 4 of 16 shots.
“It was a final, it was a bit nervous for both teams,” said Korea’s Latvian coach Nikolajs Mazurs. “Maybe not a lot of scoring, but maybe the players experienced a little bit more pressure, missing free throws, missing open shots and stuff like that. But that’s the game as well.”
After an uneventful first half ended with the score tied 28-28, Lee Hyunjung led a Korean 3-point spree in the third quarter, hitting three of Korea’s six shots from beyond the arc. Japan also had its best quarter shooting-wise to keep the Koreans in striking distance as the period ended with Korea ahead 55-47.
“He stepped up when he was needed,” Mazurs said of Lee.
Lee hit another 3-pointer early in the fourth quarter as Korea opened a 13-point lead at one point, but Japan would never get closer than eight, much to the delight of the small smattering of Korean flag-waving fans in the stands.
“It was a hard-fought game, it could have gone either way,” Japan coach Daisuke Yoshimoto said. “It was 28-28 at the half. They only scored 67 points, I think our defense was right there.
But H.J. got loose in the third quarter and then we just couldn’t handle their ball pressure. Their will and determination were greater than ours, and I want to congratulate the Korean team.”
Korea, which won its previous titles in 1970, 1982, 2002 and 2014, now has 15 medals in the 20 editions of the Asian Games. Japan walked away with its first medal since 2014 after its third trip to the final; it previously lost to the Philippines in both 1951 and 1962.
*In the bronze-medal game earlier in the day, Matin Aghajanpour sank six 3-pointers and finished with a team-high 21 points and Piter Girgoorian added 15 as Iran pulled away in the second half to stun China 79-70.
Iran, which trailed 31-29 at halftime, led by as much as 13 points in the fourth quarter before China pulled to within one with six minutes left. But Aghajanpour converted a 4-point play to put Iran up 67-62 and China never threatened again.
Iran made 15 of 33 3-point shots overall to take home an Asian Games medal for the sixth time, including four straight from 2006 to 2018. China, an eight-time past champion, failed to medal for just the second time in 14 competitions dating back to 1974.