August 06, 2007	Monday	Rajab 21, 1428

TOKUSHIMA (Japan), Aug 5: Iran on Sunday won a spot in the basketball tournament at next year's Beijing Olympics when they defeated Lebanon 74-69 to win the Asian men's championship.

It was the first time that Iran — bronze medallists at last year's Asian Games — won the continental title since the inaugural 1960 championship, with their previous best finish at fourth place in 1993.

Hamed Ehadadi was the game's top scorer, pouring in 31 points, while Mohammad Nikkhah added 15 points to lead the Iranian squad.

Earlier in the day, two-time former champions South Korea kept their Olympic hopes alive when they defeated Kazakhstan 80-76 to finish in third place.

Ha Seung-Jin scored 25 points, Kim Joo-Sung added 18 points and Cha Jae-Young scored 11 points for the bronze medal team.

Lebanon and South Korea are now eligible for the final Olympic qualifying round, which will take place next July.

In the playoff round, Jordan beat Taiwan 97-74 to take fifth place, and Qatar nipped past Japan 86-82 to finish seventh.

Olympic hosts China, who crashed out in the first round, have an automatic spot for the Beijing Games.

Final standings: 1. Iran, 2. Lebanon, 3. South Korea, 4. Kazakhstan, 5. Jordan, 6. Taiwan, 7. Qatar, 8. Japan, 9. Philippines, 10. China, 11. Syria, 12. Indonesia, 13. Hong Kong, 14 Kuwait, 15. India, 16. UAE.—AFP