2014 FIBA Asia Cup Roundup: Day 6

Only four are left standing: China, Gilas, Taiwan, and Iran.

Day 6 of the 2014 FIBA Asia Cup in Wuhan, China featured four quarterfinal knockout games. Taiwan, Iran, and China all disposed of their foes quite easily, but the Philippines had to squeak past a much-improved Indian squad to advance.

In the first game, Taiwan left the door open for a Japanese comeback in the second half before righting the ship in the fourth quarter and winning, 76-62. The Taiwanese carried a 12-point lead into the break, but saw it evaporate amidst torrid shooting from Japan in the third canto that trimmed the difference to just two points entering the final frame. Taiwan was up to the challenge, however, outscoring Team Hayabusa by a dozen points in the final ten minutes to seal their semifinal seat. Liu Cheng filled the stat-sheet for Taiwan with 22 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, and 2 blocks, while naturalized player Quincy Davis added 14 points and TWENTY rebounds. On the other end, Daiki Tanaka led Japan with 14 points, while Joji Takeuchi and Tenketsu Harimoto each tossed in 10 markers.

In game #2, Iran didn’t waste any time in disposing of its WABA rival, Jordan, 75-60. On the same floor where they lost to Jordan in the quarterfinals of the 2011 FIBA Asia Championships, the Iranians exacted revenge, leaning on a pair of up-and-coming players to lead the charge. Mohammad Jamshidi, considered the heir apparent to Samad Nikkhah Bahrami, tallied a game-high 26 points on 8/13 FG shooting to pace Team Melli’s scoring, while Sajjad Mashayekhi, considered the heir apparent to Mahdi Kamrani, took care of playmaking chores with 10 points, 6 boards, 3 assists, and 2 steals. Of course, former NBAer Hamed Haddadi was also solid with 14 points and 10 rebounds. For its part, Jordan was led by the combined 28 points of Rasheim Wright and young slotman Ahmad Al-Dwairi. Iran continues to have a chance to defend the crown it won two years ago in Tokyo.

In the day’s third match, the Filipinos squandered another double-digit lead and nearly paid for it again. With about 5 minutes left in the game, Paul Lee sank a three-pointer that turned out to be the last basket for Gilas Pilipinas. His trey gave Gilas a commanding 70-54 lead, but coach Chot Reyes’s wards soon became a little too careless, giving away turnover after turnover and missing one shot after another in the final few minutes of play. This enabled India to storm back into the game thanks to timely hits from Amrtipal Singh, Amjyot Singh, Pratham Singh, and iconic guard Vishesh Bhriguvanshi. It was strangely reminiscent of how Scott Flemming’s boys pulled the rug from under China a few days ago. This time, however, the lead proved to be too big to overhaul as India simply ran out of time. Paul Lee topscored for Gilas anew with 15 points, while the frontline duo of Marcus Douthit and Ranidel De Ocampo contributed 14 and 13 makers respectively. Amritpal Singh was a tower of strength for India with 20 points and 10 rebounds.

The nightcap featured a blowout win for hosts China over also-ran Singapore, 84-37. China dominated from the get-go here, and the outcome was never really beyond doubt. After leading by just 8 points going into the second quarter, the Chinese displayed awesome defense, limiting Singapore to just 11 points bridging the second and third periods. When the final stanza started, China was already ahead, 64-21. All the Chinese players scored in this game, with Gu Quan’s 15 points leading the way. Gao Shang hit four triples to finish with 14 points, while Tao Hanling registered a 13-point, 10-rebound double-double. Wei Long Wong was the only Singaporean in double-figures, dropping 10 points.

Classification match-ups:

Japan vs. Singapore

Jordan vs. India

Semifinals match-ups:

Iran vs. Philippines

Taiwan vs. China

BOX SCORES:

Day 6:

TAIWAN over JAPAN, 76-62

TPE 76 - Liu 22, Chen Y 16, Davis 14, Lu 11, Chang 4, Chen K 4, Peng 2, Hu 2, Chou 1, Chen H 0, Lin 0, Lee 0

JPN 62 - Tanaka 14, Takeuchi J 10, Harimoto 10, Hiejima 7, Ishizaki 6, Shonaka 5, Takeuchi K 4, Okada 3, Kikuchi 2, Ono 1, Ota 0

QS: 20-20, 41-29, 51-49, 76-62

Chen Ying-Chun slices through the Japanese defense.

Daiki Tanaka challenges the Taiwanese interior D.

Liu Cheng splits the D in midair.

IRAN over JORDAN, 75-60

IRI 75 - Jamshidi 26, Haddadi 14, Mashayekhi 10, Arghavan 9, Yakhchali 5, Veisi 4, Lalehzadeh 3, Kazemi 2, Zangeneh 2, Sahakian 0, Akbari 0, Kardoust 0

JOR 60 - Wright 14, Al-Dwairi 14, Al-Sous 9, Abdeen 9, Abu Ruqayah 7, Al-Hamarsheh 4, Hussein 3, Al-Najjar 0, Eid 0, Al-Awadi 0, Hadrab 0

QS: 21-12, 33-22, 51-38, 75-60