TEHRAN – Iran basketball team suffered a 100-59 loss against Brazil in the opening match of the 2023 FIBA World Cup on Saturday.

Matin Aghajanpour led Iran with 11 points and 2 rebounds while Bruno Caboclo collected 16 points and 7 rebounds for the Brazilian team at the Indonesia Arena in Jakarta.

“Brazil showed a high commitment from the very beginning. We were the total opposite in the first half. The first half score doesn’t show the real difference between both teams. Our concentration level increased in the second half,” said Iran coach Hakan Demir.

“We played a close game in some moments. Of course, 40 points is too big of a difference, but it’s due to the first half. It’s important to recover from this. We are in a strong group, but we still have an aim to make the Olympics or the Olympic Qualifiers,” he added.

Brazilian guard Raul Neto apparently suffered a severe injury during the third quarter and was carried off the court on stretchers.

Team Melli will play Ivory Coast on Aug. 28 in Group G and meet world No. 1 Spain two days later.