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| Mario Bonleon drives strong to the hole as the Pinoys get win number 2 in Mongolia. |
PHILIPPINES over KAZAKHSTAN, 83-69
PHI 83 – Bonleon 20, Alejandro 18, Suarez 14, Cani 10, Pingoy 4, Rivero 4, Porter 4, Babilonia 3, Olayon 2, Lao 2, Nambatac 2, Javelosa 0
KAZ 69 – Kurochka 22, Maxutov 22, Marchuk 14, Zhumabek 5, Nalogov 3, Kadtsin 2, Nurkhanov 1, Toktarov 0, Kryachko 0, Tulepbergonov 0, Korotkiy 0
QS: 18-18, 38-30, 55-52, 83-69
- The wing connection of Jay-J Alejandro and Mario Bonleon clicked really well against a much taller Kazakh squad. Both guys combined for all four of the PInoys' triples that helped open things up, but the keys were outrebounding the bigger Middle Asians and limiting them to just 29% from the field. Undersized center Jay Javelosa also played really well despite not scoring any points. The former Ateneo Blue Eaglet grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds.
- Alexey Murochka and Alymzhan Maxutov paired up for 44 points while shooting a combined 8 three-pointers. Maxim Marchuk was the only other Kazakh in double-figures with 14.
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| Rey Nambatac makes a kick-out pass against the much taller Kazakhs. |
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| Alexey Kurochka was one of the biggest thorns on the side of the Philippines. |
LEBANON over HONG KONG, 113-70
LIB 113 – Arakji 21, Salem 17, Mezher 15, Choueiry 13, Chamoun 11, Nemer 11, Assi 10, Al-Agha 7, Abi Kheres 4, El Ali 4, Hadidian 0, Tabaja 0
HK 70 – Chang 14, Ng CY 14, Tsai 11, Ho 11, Leung 9, Wong 5, Tong 2, Ng S 2, Tsoi 2, Chung 0, Lau 0
QS: 25-18, 59-29, 90-52, 113-70
- Lebanon wasn't able to put away the Honk Kong squad until early in the second period. Wael Arakji led the way with 21 points, 5 rebounds, 3assists, and 2 steals, while Jimmy Salem scored 17 markers and hit 2 treys. Five other Lebanese finished in double-figures to underscore their dominance over Hong Kong.
- Lebanon forced Hong Kong to commit 31 turnovers on the strength of 17 steals, while also outrebounding them, 53-39. Chang You Fai and Ng Chun Yan led HK with 14 points apiece.
INDONESIA over BAHRAIN, 72-67
INA 72 – Panagan 17, Kokodiputro 14, Halim 14, Tuasela 7, Lapian 5, Sitorus 5, Baskoro 3, Kosasih 3, Pangesthio 2, Adrianno 2, Istiadi 0, Oei 0
BRN 67 – Buallay 24, Shukralla A 12, Naser 11, Ali Sayed 9, Melad 5, Abul 4, Shukralla 2, Abdul Kareem 0, Abdul Rasool 0, Ismaeel 0, Abdul Redha 0,
QS: 19-12, 25-38, 48-52, 72-67
- Indonesia stayed alive for a second round berth after a strong second half that saw them come back from a double-digit deficit and ice the game in the dying minutes. Kristianto Halim continued his strong play with a nifty double-double line of 14 points and 12 rebounds, while Jan Misael Panagan scored 17 points and grabbed 9 boards.
- Bahrain's aggressive defense that forced 34 Indon turnovers was offset by their rebounding deficiency (34-50) and their woeful free throw shooting (11-for-21). This loss endangers their effort to get a second round ticket. Mohamed Buallay led them with 24 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 steals.
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| Jasim Abul tries to avoid the long arm of Indon big man Kristiyanto Halim. |
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| Indonesia and Bahrain fought tooth and nail for the important Day 2 win. |
CHINA over INDIA, 119-54
CHN 119 – Gao 22, Bai 15, Wang 15, Dai 13, Wu 11, Li Q 11, Han 9, Luo 8, Li J 7, Yang 6, Shao 2
IND 54 – Rakesh 19, Narender 10, Bhasin 9, Brar 6, Nair 4, Atwal 2, Saminathan 2, Sunder 2, Kanarjee 0, Singh L 0, Joshua 0
QS: 27-4, 55-14, 88-33, 119-54
- India was on the receiving end of a relentless and merciless Chinese onslaught that lasted the entire game. Gao Shang led China with 22 points, 4 steals, a nd 3 assists, while Bai Bing and Wang Zhelin scored 15 points each. Dai Huaibo, Wu Qian, and Li Qi all scored in double digits as well. China dominated practically every category in this their second win of the tournament.
- The Indians lost their second straight and must win on Day 3 if they still want to make the bus for the next round. Rakesh Singh led the way with 19 points and 10 rebounds for the champs of South Asia.
JAPAN over SINGAPORE, 110-53
JPN 110 – Sumino 24, Narita 22, Baba 13, Watanabe R 10, Watanabe Y 8, Mori 8, Sugiura 8, Sekido 6, Terazono 6, Mitsuda 5, Osaki 0
SIN 53 – Tay 15, Low 12, Tan 8, Lim J 8, Ng N 3, Quah 3, Tay 2, Yeo 2, Ng J 0, Koh 0, Lim SH 0
QS: 30-12, 58-20, 86-43, 110-53
- Japan wasted no time in dispatching the Singaporeans, who never threatened after a tight first five minutes of play. Ryogo Sumino and Masahiro Narita combined for 46 points on 18-of-25 shooting as Japan bounced back after an opening day loss to EABA rivals Korea. Yudai Baba and Ryunosuke Watanabe also broke into twin digits with 13 and 10 markers respectively.
- Singapore trailed in virtually every statistic as the difference in depth was made apparent quite immediately. Nonetheless, two guys scored in double figures, with Ding Loon Tay scoring 15 and Remus Low producing 12. Singapore's chances of advancing are all but lost as they face the unbeaten Koreans in their third game.
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| Justin Lim of Singapore battles hard under the basket against Japan. |
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| Yudai Baba gets a free look from in close as the Japanese beat the Singaporeans. |
IRAN over SAUDI ARABIA, 86-54
IRI 86 – Yakhchali 31, Dalirzahan 15, Rahmati 10, Mashayekhi 9, Foroutan 6, Najafi 3, Mozafari 2, Dehghani 2, Bagheri 2, Yousofvand 2, Yazdanpanah 0
KSA 54 – Faqihi 18, Abo Jalas 17, Al-Hosawe 5, Sufyani 4, Bakhashwain 4, Barnawi 4, Bafarat 2, Ahmedkhalil 0, Musallam 0, Al-Tamar 0, Mahammed 0
QS: 23-11, 40-25, 64-45, 86-54
- Iran didn't blow out the Saudis as bad as people expected, but it was still a clearly dominating performance by the WABA champs. Once again, Benham Yakhchali was the most potent scorer with 31 points on an almost-perfect 12-of-13 shooting night, which included 5 triples. Vahid Dalirzahan also delivered with 15 markers, 6 rebounds, and 4 steals.
- Saudi Arabia dropped its second game in as many days and now goes up against Kazakhstan in a do-or-die match for the last Group D ticket to the second round. Waheed Faqihi shone again with 18 points, while Nassir Abo Jalas also did well with 17 markers.
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| Saudi wingman Nassir Abu Jalas sidesteps his way to the hole. |
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| Sajjad Masayekhi goes up strong as Iran racked up win number 2. |
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| Mohammad Yousofvand goes horizontal after slamming one home against Saudi Arabia. |
TAIWAN over MONGOLIA, 107-42
TPE 107 – Huang TH 18, Li 12, Lee 12, Chen 10, Lin 10, Lu 8, Huang HH 8, Chin 7, Wu 6, Chiu 6, Fan 6, Cheng 4,
MGL 42 – Lkhamjav 15, Chinzorig 11, Khureltogoo 6, Nyamkhuu 6, Doniddemberel 4, Dashdavaa 0, Munkhtamga 0, Enkhtsetseg 0, Ochbadrakh 0, baasansuren 0, Ganbaatar 0, Barkhuu 0
QS: 26-10, 57-21, 86-32, 107-42
- Taiwan rolled to win number 2 at the expense of the hosts. Five players finished in double figures for Coah Yang I-Feng, with everyone scoring at least 4 points. The Taiwanese look like shoo-ins to top Group C and advance to the second round towing two victories. Huang Tsung-Han led their cause with 18 points, while Li Yu-Wei and Lee Chia-Jui each pumped in 12 markers.
- It's clear Mongolia still has a long way to go before they can be considered threats in Asian basketball, but they did show some flashes of brilliance here. Munkhnasan Lkhamjav continued to be a reliable scorer as he made 15 points, but he did turn the ball over 8 times. Enkhtaivan Chinzorig was the only other Mongolian in twin digits with 11 points.
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| Munkhnasan Lkhamjav of Mongolia proved to be a steady offensive threat. |
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| Huang Hung-Han is a fast-rising star in Taiwanese basketball. |
SOUTH KOREA over SYRIA, 79-62
KOR 79 – Cheon 24, Lee 18, Kang 17, Choi SG 6, Choi SM 4, Heo 4, Jung 2, Kim SJ 2, Park 2
SYR 62 – Atli 11, Shahin 11, Obaysi 8, Trab 7, Baghajati 7, Bakar 6, Al-Zaim 5, Mashaal 5, Hashem 2, Oubeid 0, Shnno 0
QS: 24-21, 45-37, 65-51, 79-62
- Knowing how dangerous the Syrians could be, Coach Kim Young-Rae of Korea didn't pull any punches. Cheon Gi-Beom, Lee Jong-Hyun, and Kang Sang-Jae combined for 59 points to spearhead Korea's charge. The EABA powerhouse actually shot worse from the field at just 37%, but they made up for it by being aggressive in driving to the basket. This resulted in 36 free throws that the Koreans converted into 27 points.
- Syria still has a chance of making the second round even after this loss. It wasn't such a bad loss either because they were able to hang with Korea for about a full half. Mohamad Atli and Mohamad Shahin each scored 11 markers to lead Syria.
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| Kang Sang-Jae proved to be a dangerous shooter if left open. |
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| Mahmoud Trab of Syria has a tough time evading the defense of Korea's Lee Jong-Hyun. |
All images are by Milad Payami/FIBAAsia.net.
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