The 2025 FIBA Under-16 Men’s Asia Cup tips off in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia from August 31 to September 7, with the Australian Crocs poised to extend their dominance in the tournament.
Led by Head Coach Greg Vanderjagt, the Crocs are aiming to add a fourth consecutive Under-16 Asia Cup to the collection. Since joining the tournament in 2017, the Crocs have boasted 17 wins from as many games, never being defeated as they have cruised their way to a three-peat in 2017, 2022 and 2023.
This Crocs squad recently toured China, which coach Vanderjagt said was a “significant building block for us with eight games in 11 days across three cities”.
“This type of exposure to the international game in a really challenging environment helped both myself and the coaching staff learn a lot about our team and how we need to position ourselves to have success at the upcoming Asia Cup.”
The Crocs have an impressive outfit, with high rated prospects leading the charge featuring New South Wales’ Antonio Browne, Queensland's Isiah Jorgenson and Victoria’s duo of Will Hamilton and Lucas Byrne who each had success at the Footlocker U18 National Championships in April.
However, coach Vanderjagt understands it won’t be easy with an ever-evolving landscape potentially making this the most competitive Under-16 Asia Cup in history.
“The challenges we will face at the Asia Cup are diverse and each day will present a different style for our team to combat,” said Vanderjagt.
“From the speed and shooting of Japan, to the physicality of New Zealand to the sheer size of the Chinese group we will face. We have to be flexible and adaptable in our planning each day to put our athletes in a position to have success.”
Tournament Format
The 16 teams are split into four groups of four in the Group Phase, where each team plays every other team in its group once.
All teams move on to the Round of 16, facing opponents from a different group (e.g, Group A teams face Group B teams). Winners proceed to the quarterfinals, while losers enter classification matches.
Australia is placed in Group A, alongside:
- Lebanon
- India
- Bahrain
| Australia’s Group A | Schedule | |||
| August 31 | 1:30pm AEST | V Bahrain | Watch Here |
| September 1 | 1:30pm AEST | V India | Watch Here |
| September 2 | 1:30pm AEST | V Lebanon | Watch Here |
The games will be held at the Buyant Ukhaa Sport Complex and MBank Arena in Ulaanbaatar for free on the FIBA Youtube channel
