On August 17, 2026, South Korea's Chosun Ilbo reported that the South Korean men's national basketball team played its second friendly match against the Japanese national team at Ariake Arena in Tokyo on the 16th, losing 66-95, and that this marked consecutive losses, following the first match the previous day (68-88).

The article pointed out, "Especially in the second match, South Korea lost by 29 points, updating the dishonorable record for South Korea's largest ever point differential loss in a Japan-Korea match." According to the article, South Korea's previous largest point differential loss in a Japan-Korea match was 17 points at the 1962 Jakarta Asian Games. However, they lost by 20 points in the first match on the 15th, and then updated that record further the following day.

The article noted, "It is believed that the difference in team composition between the two teams also influenced this result." South Korea's ace, Lee Hyun-jung, could not join the national team due to his NBA mini-camp schedule, and Song Kyo-chang and Choi Jun-yong were also absent due to injuries and other reasons.

Meanwhile, Japan called up key players such as Yuki Kawamura of the NBA Los Angeles Clippers, Yuta Baba, and Josh Hawkinson. Although Rui Hachimura was excluded from the roster for conditioning, Japan took the lead from the outset.

Japan successfully made a strong start with a 13-0 run, including a three-point shot by Ryusei Sasaki, from the first quarter. They ended the first quarter with a 10-point lead, 26-16.

In the third quarter, as Japan rested some key players, South Korea narrowed the gap, with Yeo Jun-seok scoring 7 consecutive points including layups and a three-pointer. However, Kawamura scored 4 consecutive points to break the momentum, and Japan extended its lead again. Towards the end of the game, Yuki Togashi and Takumi Saito made three-point shots, and ultimately South Korea suffered a crushing defeat by 29 points.

Regarding this, South Korean netizens commented: "A 29-point difference is truly shocking. I didn't realize the skill gap with Japan was this wide." "It's even scarier that Japan achieved this result without Hachimura." "Yuki Kawamura is really skilled." "I understand why Japanese basketball has become stronger." "It's natural given world rankings of 22nd (Japan) and 57th (South Korea)," and other remarks were made.

On the other hand, comments also included: "Since South Korea also had key players missing, it's too early to judge the skill gap based solely on this match." "We shouldn't dwell on this crushing defeat." "I hope they get revenge at the Asian Games." "I hope this loss serves as an opportunity for South Korea to develop more young players." "Instead of comparing themselves to Japan, I hope they aim for the best results in South Korean basketball history," and similar opinions were seen. (Translation/Editor: Higuchi)