Co-host Japan's bid to reach the second round of the FIBA Basketball World Cup ended Tuesday with a 109-89 loss to heavyweight Australia.
Looking to emulate Sunday's thrilling 98-88 comeback win over Finland, world No. 36 Japan ran into a brick wall in the form of No. 3 Australia at Okinawa Arena.
Head coach Brian Goorjian's Olympic bronze medal-winning team combined a powerful inside presence with unrelenting defense to outgun a Japanese side that only showed glimpses of its best and could not keep pace in the must-win game for both teams.