Old rivalries to renew in FIBA Asia 2013 Quarterfinals

Thursday, August 8, 2013

Old rivalries to renew in FIBA Asia 2013 Quarterfinals

The Gilas Pilipinas (Philippines) and Iran on Wednesday emerged as the kings of Group E and F respectively at the FIBA Asia Championship ahead of Friday’s knockout Quarter-Finals, which will leave just four teams alive in the race for the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup in Spain.

Filipino fans watched intently as Qatar defeated Chinese Taipei in a heart-stopper to give their team a chance of claiming first place, but more tension was to come as Hong Kong nearly ruined the hosts' party in a thrilling encounter. (watch Philippines vs Hong Kong Full Game Replay Video)

The underdogs led by as many as 10 in the second quarter and were still in front in the shadows of three-quarter-time, but nine points from LA Tenorio bridging the last change brought the crowd to life and put the Philippines clear.

Hong Kong charged again and pulled within four with three minutes to play, but Gabe Norwood (11 points, 10 rebounds) turned on the defense and scored five straight points to end the resistance.

The Philippines' 67-55 win set up a Quarter-Final date with Kazakhstan, who received an 85-53 lesson from Iran to finish the Second Round.

Hamed Hadadi (16 points, 9 rebounds) led the way for the undefeated Iranians, who now face Jordan in a repeat of their epic 2011 Quarter-Final clash.

Jordan recorded a hard-fought but convincing 65-56 win over Japan - behind 15 points and 19 rebounds from centre Mohammad Hussein - to seal their place in the final eight and keep their hopes of qualifying for Spain 2014 alive.

Korea claimed second place in Group F with an easy 95-54 win over India, Kim Mingoo nearly compiling the tournament’s first triple-double with 14 points, nine assists and eight rebounds.

The victory confirmed a Quarter-Final clash with Qatar after their 71-68 victory over Chinese Taipei.

In the game of the day, both teams had chances to prevail with Qatar's offensive rebounding and hustle matching Taipei's precise ball movement and speedy penetration.

Qatar finally skipped 10 points clear with three minutes remaining but Taipei reeled off a 9-2 run, setting up a game-tying attempt by Tseng Wen-Ting that fell wide.

Power forward Yasseen Musa (20 points, 19 rebounds) was the star for Qatar, scoring eight points in their fourth-quarter run, while naturalised Taipei beg man Quincy Davis (23 points, 8 rebounds) was also impressive.

Taipei claimed second place in Group E despite the loss and now face rivals China in a classic Quarter-Final showdown.

Though the Chinese have limped their way through the tournament so far, they received a boost with the return of Yi Jianlian for their 88-66 win over Bahrain.

Yi managed 12 points in 13 minutes to indicate he will be a force come Friday, headlining six Chinese players in double figures.

By Friday night just four teams will remain in the hunt for three spots at the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup. (watch FIBA Asia Championship 2013 live streaming )