Xavier Cooks stars as Boomers come back from 15-point deficit in Asia Cup thriller against China

News.com.au

11 hours ago

King Cooks saved his best for last with the most dominant individual performance of the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup as the Australian Boomers showed grit and guts to fight back from 15 points down to claim a third straight gold medal at the tournament.
In what would become one of the most entertaining and closely fought contests in Asia Cup history, Australia and China traded big shot after big shot in a cutthroat fourth quarter that produced an incredible 19 lead changes, ending in a 90-89 nailbiter to the Boomers.
Coach Adam Caporn said his Boomers were 'shellshocked' early before digging deep to comeback into the game.
'I'm just so proud of the character of our guys,' Caporn said.
'They obviously had a good start, and I thought we were a little off. We were a little shell shocked, defensively, a step off our coverages and credit to them, they put us on our heels.
'We were down 15, very tight, close game, and I felt the poise of our players, felt their toughness, felt their problem solving attitudes - and we had that from the start of camp.
'Once we got our momentum, it was neck and neck till the end.
'It's a credit to the players. That's not something we taught them.'
Xavier Cooks, the 2022 NBL MVP and 2023 World Cup Boomer feasted on the Chinese, who could not handle the 203cm star's awkward combination of size, speed and guard-like skills as he poured in 30 points and tore down 9 rebounds.
Watching the 29-year-old dive on the floor after every loose ball and fight for possession several times in the fourth quarter was an indicator of just how much the green and gold means to the former Washington Wizard — even if a late mistake gave China a chance to steal it at the buzzer.
Up two with 3.9 seconds left, Cooks was fouled in a baseline scrap and sent to the free throw line. A review of the play showed he also made contact with the head of China's Rui Zhao and he was assessed an unsportsmanlike foul.
He made one of two free throws, then Zhao made both of his, cutting the lead to one.
China did get a look but Mingxuan Hu went from 26-point hero to zero as his three-point try was off the mark, cuing the Aussie celebrations.
Cooks set the standard but the Boomers had heroes everywhere, chiefly in the form of the emergent Jaylin Galloway.
Through a series of nasty dunks and a tournament-high six three pointers, Galloway produced 23 points and 5 rebounds against the Chinese.
The 22-year-old, Cooks' teammate at the Kings, was the clear standout in an even Boomers' outfit, averaging 15.7 points and shooting a ridiculous 18-28 on threes — 64 per cent — on the way to being named tournament MVP and an All-Star Five nod.
A shoulder injury cruelled his NBL25 campaign and he's endured a mental and physical battle to get back to his best.
The athleticism had always been there but the uptick in Galloway's deep shooting was a pleasant surprise and a skill that could help him take the NBL by storm this season.
To give you an idea of how even Australia's performance across the tournament was, Galloway's 15.7 points led the team — but was only good enough for 16th in the tournament — no Australian was among the top 15 rebounders and only Will Hickey (5.3, sixth) was in the top 25 in assists.
As good as Cooks was at both ends, captain Will Magnay was an absolute monster in defence, producing perhaps the best four-point game of his international career.
As the rest of the Aussies struggled to contain the potent Chinese — collectively bigger, stronger and more athletic than any other opponent the Boomers had faced at the tournament — Magnay was a Rock of Gibraltar in defence.
The Boomers were +18 with the Olympian on the floor in 1-point win, his stocks sheet reading three steals and three blocks to go with 5 rebounds and 4 assists — a game personified by unselfishness.
Will Hickey promised to put a target on the Chinese and his length and athleticism was impossible to handle for their smaller guards on his way to 15 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists.
The 26-year-old split them open time and time again throughout the game, coming up huge late.
With one minute to go, Hickey caught a Jack McVeigh airball and laid it in to give the Boomers a one-point lead. On the next play, the Illawarra Hawks championship guard gathered a China miss, then found Magnay rolling to the cup. The Aussie captain was fouled and potted 1-2 to give the Boomers an 89-87 lead with 24.6 left as the late drama unfolded.
Jack White had been the unsung hero of the Boomers' campaign but the Aussies will be singing his name from the 1000m Jeddah Tower after his block on a Meng Lei three-point attempt with seven seconds left preserved a two-point lead.
Jack McVeigh was the fourth Boomer in double digits with 11 points in the final and he was as much responsible for Australia's golden run as anyone, averaging 13.5 points per game.
China found supremacy in the form of 211cm tower Jinqiu Hu (20 points, 10 rebounds) and lightning quick guard Mingxuan Hu (26) in the heartbreaking defeat.