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Lebanon’s women’s basketball team finished third in the William Jones Cup on Saturday 29 August in Taiwan after beating South Korea 78-66 in its last game. Rebecca Akl, captain of the cedars, finished the best Lebanese scorer of the game with 24 points, ahead of Morgan Jones, 17 points author. This podium concludes a preparation competition integrated into the selection program for the Women’s Asian Cup, scheduled for 10-18 June 2027 in Cebu, Philippines.

Lebanon beats South Korea 78-66

Lebanon needed to finish its competition on a victory to consolidate its place on the podium. The players in the selection met their goal by overcoming South Korea by 12 points, 78-66, Saturday on the last day.

Rebecca Akl played a major role in this success. Lebanese captain entered24 Points, or nearly one third of the total of his team. Morgan Jones added17 pointsconfirming its offensive importance throughout the taiwanese tournament.

This victory allows Lebanon to finish third in a six-team competition. In addition to the Lebanese selection, the Women’s Jones Cup hosted teams representing Japan, South Korea and Thailand, as well as two teams from Taiwan.

The competition took place from 26 to 29 August. For Lebanon, it was less an isolated objective than a step in the construction of the team to fight the next major Asian deadlines.

Successful entry against Taiwan

The Lebanese team started their Jones Cup with a clear victory over Chinese Taipei White. The cedars were imposed74-57a gap of 17 points, giving an immediate indication of their offensive abilities in this competition.

Morgan Jones was then the best Lebanese marker with(26 Points ). Rebecca Akl added15 points, the duo that would still carry the team in the last match against South Korea.

The inaugural success had enabled Lebanon to make a good start before competing with Asian opponents of different levels and styles. In particular, the selection faced Japan, one of the references of the Continental women’s basketball.

This confrontation was much more difficult. Japan had largely imposed<g id= »1″>$</g><g id= »2″></g><g id= »3″>108.58</g>, highlighting the gap between Lebanon and the best Asian formations. For the Lebanese staff, this type of meeting is precisely one of the interests of a preparation tournament like the Jones Cup.

Rebecca Akl confirms her role as captain

Rebecca Akl’s performance against South Korea is one of the main lessons of the last day. With 24 points, the leader assumed her role as captain as Lebanon sought third place.

Akl remains one of the most experienced players in the selection. Its role is not limited to offensive production: it is also one of the main relays of the staff on the ground and participates in the organisation of the Lebanese game.

His performance with the selection in previous international competitions had already shown this versatility. At the pre-qualification tournament at the 2026 World Cup held in Kigali, she had shot14.3 points and 5.7 assists per gameaccording to FIBA statistics.

In Taiwan, his association with Morgan Jones provided Lebanon with much of its offensive power. Both players scored 41 points in the inaugural win against Chinese Taipei White. They scored exactly the same, 41, against South Korea on Saturday.

Morgan Jones, another Cedar offensive engine

Morgan Jones also played an important role in the tournament. Its26 points against Chinese Taipei Whitecontributed significantly to the first Lebanese success. She finished the competition with 17 points against the South Koreans.

Its profile brings an additional physical dimension to the selection. Jones is 1.88 metres tall and evolves mainly on outside posts, allowing the staff to have a player capable of bringing both size and mobility.

Its integration into the workforce is part of the search for a sufficiently competitive group to face the best Asian selections. The Jones Cup allows the staff to test the complementarities between the players before the official deadlines.

Around Akl and Jones, the workforce includes Zena Elias, Maria Ghaleb, Nour Labban, Tina Raffoul, Reem El-Ghali, Elissa Abu Jaoude, Perla Bou Nasr, Amar Mansour, Syrita Faraj and Lyn Abi Mosleh.

A third place which serves above all the preparation

The podium in Taiwan was a positive result, but the Lebanese Federation had a broader objective. The Jones Cup is a friendly competition and its main interest lies in the international preparation it offers.

The Lebanese selection is led by Greek technician Eleni Kafogianni. It is assisted by Karl Abu Khalil and Leila Fares. Tamara Khalil led the delegation present in Taiwan.

The staff now has several additional meetings to evaluate their group. The significant differences observed during the competition, between the 17-point victory against Chinese Taipei White and the heavy defeat against Japan, provide indications of the areas in which the team still needs to advance.

The success against South Korea nevertheless offers a positive exit. Beating a South Korean 12-point formation allows Lebanon to complete its trip with a significant result before continuing its preparation.

Cebu objective in June 2027

The real deadline now lies injune 2027. The Lebanese Federation is preparing the selection for the Women’s Asian Cup, to be held in Cebu, Philippines, from10-18 juneprotection caps (if present).

This competition will place Lebanon at a higher level than a friendly tournament. Asian women’s basketball has several world-leading selections, including Japan, China and Australia.

The confrontation with Japan at the Jones Cup gave a glimpse of this level. The defeat 108-58 recalls the amount of work that remains to be done to narrow the gap with the continental elite.

The Taiwan podium should therefore not mask the tournament’s sports lessons. Lebanon has shown its ability to defeat several Asian opponents, but also its difficulties when faced with a formation belonging to the first continental level.

The preparation must allow to work on this difference before Cebu. Future gatherings will be used to stabilize rotation, develop automation and define the group that will compete in the Asian competition.

A podium to finish four days in Taiwan

The third place however gives a sporting value to the trip. Lebanon did not content itself with accumulating preparatory meetings: it left Taiwan with a podium and a victory in its last game.

78-66 against South Korea also provides continuity to the Federation’s work on women’s selection. The goal now is to increase international confrontations before the Asian Cup in order to avoid approaching the Cebu tournament without recent references to the continent’s teams.

The Jones Cup was able to measure the two faces of the selection. Confronted with Chinese Taipei White and South Korea, Lebanon has shown that it can impose its game and rely on several individuals able to score. In the face of Japan, he measured the distance between him and the best Asian nations.

On Saturday, however, the last image of the tournament remains that of a victory. With Rebecca Akl’s 24 points and Morgan Jones’ 17 points, Lebanon dominated South Korea 78-66 and left Taiwan in third place, with now less than ten months to turn this preparation into a progression before the Cebu Asian Cup.