The Qatar men's national team outscored Japan 22-13 in the fourth quarter en route to a one-point victory in the teams' 27th FIBA Asia Championship opener on Thursday in Manila.
Japan will look to rebound from its 75-74 Group B loss in a Wednesday game against Hong Kong. Tipoff is set for 3:30 p.m. local time.
Qatar center Jarvis Hayes, a naturalized citizen and the No. 10 pick in the 2003 NBA Draft (his NBA career spanned seven seasons with the Washington Wizards, Detroit Pistons and New Jersey Nets), paced the victors with 20 points, including 7-for-8 from the free-throw line. Big man Yasseen Ismail Musa finished with 12 points and a game-best 15 rebounds (eight offensive boards) and four assists. Erfan Ali Saeed chipped in with 14 points, six boards and three blocked shots for Qatar, whose coach, Thomas Wisman, is a former Japan bench boss.