Rui Hachimura, Japan advance in World Cup qualifying

Gonzaga’s Rui Hachimura scored 13 points for Japan, which crushed Chinese Taipei 108-68 Monday to advance to the next stage of FIBA World Cup qualifying.

Japan (2-4) placed third in Group B behind Phillipines (4-2) and Australia (5-1). All three move on to compete in September against three Group D qualifiers.

Nick Fazekas, a former NBA player and Nevada standout, scored 32 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for Japan. Chinese Taipei edged Japan, playing without Hachimura and Fazekas, 70-69 in February in a preliminary round.

Hachimura, a rising junior forward at Gonzaga, made 6 of 9 field-goal attempts and added three rebounds and two assists. Hachimura and Fazekas combined for 49 points in Friday’s upset win over Australia.

U.S. splits two games

The U.S., which was guaranteed a berth in the next round, lost to Mexico before rebounding to thump Cuba.

Former Gonzaga guard David Stockton had 10 points in Thursday’s loss in Mexico City, just the Americans’ second to Mexico in 30 meetings. The other setback came in the 2011 Pan Am games.

Stockton had 13 points, three assists and three rebounds as the U.S. defeated Cuba 93-62 on Sunday in Havana. The U.S. finished 5-1 to win Group C.