Boomers outgun Qatar in heated Asia Cup encounter

The Australian Boomers had to battle through a tense first half against Qatar in their FIBA Asia Cup clash, but as the game wore on they took complete control.

Jaylin Galloway led the charge with 24 points, guiding Australia to a commanding 110-82 victory.

The Boomers opened their Asia Cup defence in Saudi Arabia with strong wins against Korea and Lebanon before looking to wrap up the group phase with a perfect record on Sunday morning local time against the already out-of-contention Qatar.

Qatar threw everything at Australia early, and on several occasions tempers threatened to spill out of control — most notably when Davo Hickey bumped Brandon Goodwin, who took exception and charged up the floor at the Illawarra Hawks championship star.

Only Sydney Kings forward Xavier Cooks stopped Goodwin from making contact with Hickey when he intervened, and things ended up calming down, but Qatar continued to perform strongly.

They opened up a five-point lead in the first half, and the upset was on the cards, with the Boomers just leading 46-43 at the half-time break.

However, in the second half it was all Australia, as they outscored Qatar 64 points to 39 while shooting 24/34 from the field at 71 per cent, along with 7/12 at 58 per cent from three-point territory.

It was an impressive display of the offensive arsenal the Boomers possess, and again it was Jaylin Galloway shining as he prepares for his return from shoulder surgery in NBL26 with the Sydney Kings.

Galloway finished with 24 points on a supremely efficient 8/10 shooting from the floor, with 2/3 from deep and 6/7 at the free-throw line.

New Cairns Taipans sharpshooter Reyne Smith knocked down 4/6 from three-point range for 15 points, with Davo Hickey adding 15 points and eight assists, and Jack McVeigh 10 points and three rebounds.

It turned out to be a physical game, especially under the basket, and Will Magnay finished with 11 points, four rebounds and two blocks, while young big man Harry Wessels added eight points and six boards.

Brandon Goodwin had an eventful game, recording seven turnovers and getting under the skin of the Boomers, but he also played all 40 minutes for Qatar and finished with 24 points, seven rebounds, five assists and three steals.

Meanwhile, to wrap up proceedings on Saturday night, New Zealand also went through the group phase with a perfect three-from-three record after a thumping 118-78 win against Chinese Taipei.

That saw new Adelaide 36ers NBL signing Flynn Cameron shine with 28 points, nine rebounds and eight assists, with Mojave King adding 22 points, eight boards and four assists, Taylor Britt 14 points and four assists, and Ben Gold 14 points and eight rebounds.

FIBA ASIA CUP SAUDI ARABIA 2025 GROUP PHASE

AUSTRALIAN BOOMERS 110 (Galloway 24, Smith 15, Hickey 15)

QATAR 82 (Goodwin 24, Harris 15, Dieng 14)

BOX SCORE