Korea coast to third win after dropping Qatar
TEHRAN (FIBA Asia Challenge 2016) – Korea coasted to their third straight win after beating Qatar, 86-60, at the FIBA Asia Challenge 2016 in Tehran, Iran.
What started out as a pretty tight game between the GCC champion and East Asian powerhouse was broken open by the Koreans in the second quarter. Coach Hur Jae’s wards outscored Qatar, 21-9, in that span to erect a 17-point halftime lead. Al Annabi would never be able to recover afterwards as they stumbled to their third loss in as many games.
Turning Point: Qatar was still within striking distance of Korea when Mohd Mohammed sank a field goal that trimmed the deficit to just six points, 29-23, in the middle of the second period. Coach Vasileios Fragkias’s wards, however, would score only two points the rest of the half as Korea turned up the intensity on both ends of the floor. The Koreans outgunned Qatar, 13-2, in the final five minutes of the first half to put up an insurmountable double-digit advantage.
Stats Don't Lie: At the end of the day, Korea were just sharper. Coach Hur’s squad shot 50.8% from the field, including 15-of-31 from beyond the arc. That’s a 48.4% percent success rate form three-point country! On the other hand, Qatar managed to shoot only 33.8% from the floor, including 8-of-28 from three-point land.
Game Hero: Spitfire Korean guard Kim SunHyung just ran rings around any Qatari player in front of him. The 1.87m speedster who plays for the Seoul SK Knights in the KBL bounced back from a ho-hum outing against Thailand by dropping 15 points on 6-of-7 field goal shooting against Qatar. He also hit all three of his three-point attempts, grabbed 4 rebounds and dished out 2 assists in a scintillating display of skill at the backcourt.
The Bottom Line: Qatar were able to keep things close till Korea asserted their dominance by way of superior shooting. Coach Hur’s squad remain undefeated as they head into a match opposite dangerous Iraq tomorrow, while Qatar will fight for their survival against the only other winless team in Group F, Thailand.
FIBA
