2011 William Jones Cup Day 4 Scores, Pictures & Commentary

Chris Tiu hit some big shots to lead Smart-Gilas past Malaysia.
(image from Basketball-tpe.org)

SMART-GILAS PILIPINAS over MALAYSIA, 86-68

PHL 86 - Tiu 14, Baracael 14, Aguilar 13, Lassiter 13, Lutz 12, Ababou 6, Barroca 5, Ballesteros 4, Hontiveros 3, Taulava 2,

MAS 68 - Chee 15, Ng 9, Ong 8, Ho 6, Wee 5, Kuek 5, Ooi 4, Batumalai 4, Loh 4, Kwaan 4, Soo 2, Chin 2

QS: 16-13, 37-34, 64-45, 86-68

- The Pinoys needed a 2nd half surge to beat the stubborn Malaysians, mainly due to the fact that Marcus Douthit and JV Casio were both rested in preparation for today's game against Korea.

- The Malaysians did some damage in the first half, and, quite literally, in the 2nd half too as Yoong Jing Kwaan grabbed something belonging to Asi Taulava that he shouldn't have grabbed. Taulava retaliated by doing a Manny Pacquiao on Kwaan. Both were ejected, but I think both will still play today.

- This win may just be the upper that Gilas needs to play well against Korea later, and to get back on track after the close loss to Jordan.

Guga Batumalai and the Malaysians threatened in the 1st half.
(image from Basketball-tpe.org)

Japeth Aguilar slams one home as Smart-Gilas bounces back
after losing to Jordan.
(image from Basketball-tpe.org)

I.R. IRAN over UNITED ARAB EMIRATES, 84-55

IRN 84 - Kardoust 23, Sahakian 13, Veisi 13, Davari 9, Nabipoor 8, Davarpanah 6, Davoudi 5, Sohrabnejad 5, Barogh 2, Rouzbahani 0

UAE 55 - Ahmad 14, Salem 9, Mubarak 6, Omar 5, Al-Sari 5, Ahmed 4, Al-Ameri 4, Al-Braiki 2, Al-Nuaimi 2, Al-Hattawi 2, Abdalla 2

QS: 25-14, 39-32, 58-42, 84-55

- Asghar Kardoust was just too big, too strong, and just too much for UAE. Iran was able to rest Hamed Haddadi, and still come out with a convincing win, which is a testament to their depth and talent.

- Judging by how they have performed far, it seems UAE won't go beyond the 1st round in this tournament, and they probably won't go far in the 2011 FIBA-Asia too.

Asghar Kardoust was an immovable force underneath.
(image from Basketball-tpe.org)

Talal Al-Nuaimi is a young buck hoping to lead
UAE to a good result in the Jones Cup.
(image from Basketball-tpe.org)

TAIWAN over JORDAN, 77-75

TPE 77 - Tseng 18, Chen HA 16, Chang 14, Lin 10, Chien 10, Su 4, Lu 3, Ho 2, Lee 0, Creighton 0

JOR 75 - Abbas 21, Wright 19, Dahglas 16, Zaghab 9, Abbaas 8, Al-Khas 2, Abu Quora 0, Abu Ruqayah 0, Soobzokov 0

QS: 17-12, 34-34, 54-59, 77-75

- This was a surprising result, given how Jordan won their first three games. Jordanian fans have lamented the officiating, and feel that most of the calls were examples of home-cooking.

- Nevertheless, it's still impressive that Taiwan were able to stay close to Jordan till the endgame despite being much smaller. It seems the quickness and shooting of Taiwanese did not desert them this time around.

Chen Hsin-An came up big in Taiwan's upset of Jordan.
(image from Basketball-tpe.org)

Lin Chih-Chieh and the Taiwanese are now
in a tie for 2nd place.
(image from Basketball-tpe.org)

SOUTH KOREA over JAPAN, 69-67

KOR 69 - Oh 22, Yang DG 14, Kim JS 14, Kim YH 6, Cho 6, Kim JK 3, Park 2, Kang 2, Lee 0, Stevenson 0, Yang HJ 0, Ha 0

JPN 67 - Matsui 12, Shonaka 11, Okada 10, Ota 8, Hinkley 7, Nishimura 5, ito 4, Arao 4, Kamata 4, Sakai 2, Noguchi 0, Watanabe 0

QS: 17-16, 42-34, 64-53, 69-67

- Coach Hur Jae was supposed to rest star forward Jarod Stevenson in this game, but the Japanese were just too spirited to let him do so. Coach Hur finally inserted Stevenson in the latter part of the 4th period, but he hardly made a dent as Japan kept the pressure on.

- Some key breaks of the game, coupled with some big plays by Yang Dong-Geun and Oh Se-Keun, proved to be enough for Korea to escape the upset axe.