Nagoya: South Korea breezed past Jordan 114-80 to reach the semifinals of the men's basketball tournament at the Asian Games in Japan, moving within two wins of claiming its first gold medal in a dozen years.

According to Yonhap News Agency, South Korea dominated Jordan in all aspects in the blowout quarterfinal victory at Aichi International Arena, where forward Lee Hyun-jung led the way with 28 points on 10-of-15 shooting in just under 21 minutes of action. He drained six three-pointers in 10 attempts and also grabbed a team-high nine rebounds.

Coached by Nikolajs Mazurs, South Korea has now won four straight games in Nagoya, having run the table in the preliminary phase with wins over Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, and Japan. In Friday's semifinals, South Korea will face the winner of the Iran-Bahrain contest set for Wednesday afternoon.

South Korea last won the men's hoops gold medal in 2014 on its home soil of Incheon. The team then settled for bronze in 2018 before getting eliminated in the quarterfinals in 2023.

South Korea set the tone early, starting the game with a 10-0 run and playing smothering defense. They collected five steals in the first quarter, building a 28-8 lead after the first 10 minutes. Jordan only got its first basket 3:34 into the game and never found its offensive rhythm, often relying on U.S.-born forward Perrin Buford to create opportunities.

South Korea kept the momentum in the second quarter, with its lead growing to 37-11 after Yu Ki-sang sank two free throws on an unsportsmanlike foul by Fadi Mustafa. Despite Jordan getting two quick buckets, South Korea snuffed out any hope of a rally with five unanswered points.

Forward Choi Jun-yong, who arrived in Japan late Tuesday after pursuing a contract with a U.S. team, made his Nagoya debut with a three-pointer. Guard Lee Jung-hyun contributed with back-to-back treys, making it a 48-16 game for South Korea with three minutes left in the first half. Despite an 11-3 run by Jordan before halftime, South Korea maintained a comfortable 51-27 lead.

The third quarter saw South Korea continue its dominance, with a 14-5 run fueled by Lee Hyun-jung's three-pointers and Byeon Jun-hyeong's three-point play. After a Jordan timeout, Lee Hyun-jung extended the lead further, scoring 19 points in the third quarter alone.

South Korea's bench players took over in the final frame, and the team topped the century mark in points for the second straight game. South Korea outrebounded Jordan 44-29 and had a 14-7 edge in offensive boards.