Iran reached the Asian Games men's basketball semi-finals for the first time in 55 years after holding off Japan 68-64 in Doha on Tuesday.

With the game tied at 64-all and 38 seconds left, Samad Nikkhah drove to the basket to score and drew a foul. Nikkhah, who shared team-high 14 points for Iran with Mahdi Kamrany, made one from the line to make it three-point game.

Shinsuke Kashiwagi had a chance to level the score for Japan, but his three-pointer attempt rimmed out to be rebounded by Iran's center Hamed Ehadadi.

"Our big men didn't attack the basket all that well," said Iranhead coach Fredrick Femi Onica. "Sometimes we tend to have breakdowns in rotation and that tends to affect our game, but defense is definitely the key to the victory."

Having a strong inside performance led by the 2.18-meter Ehadadi, who pulled down game-high 15 rebounds and added 12 points, Iran outscored Japan 32-18 in the paint. Iran also reaped 26 second chance points, compared to two by Japan.

"Rebounds made the difference," said Japan head coach Kimikazu Suzuki. "Japan and Iran both missed a lot of shots, but Iran had many points from (offensive) rebounds. That was our problem."

The Japanese were out rebounded 52-37 while Iran grabbed a total of 29 offensive rebounds.

Iran, who last played in a basketball semi-final at the inaugural 1951 Asian Games in New Delhi, India, where they won the bronze medal, will play Chinese Taipei or Qatar in Wednesday's semi-finals.