BEIRUT (FIBA Asia Cup 2017) - Both Iraq and Jordan were dealt painful losses on Day 6, but now they have a chance to recover and advance to the FIBA Asia Cup 2017 Quarter-Finals.

Iraq looked to have second place in Group B wrapped up against China, but they squandered a big lead in the final five minutes of their encounter and were left on the losing end. Jordan, meanwhile, mounted a furious second half rally against powerhouse Iran, but Al Nashama just did not have enough gas left to complete the comeback. Both teams can bounce back in a big way today if they can prevail in this bout and book tickets to the knockout Quarter-Finals, where New Zealand await.

Key Matchup: Where Kevin Galloway goes, so do Iraq. That was proven in their loss to both the Philippines and China. During crucial stretches of those matches, Galloway seemed to fade and with that were Iraq's chances of pulling off stunning upsets. Now they will lean on Galloway again against a bigger and deeper Jordanian quintet. It won't be easy for coach Sam Daghlas's wards to stop Galloway, though, and that task will fall on the shoulders of Ahmad Al Hamarsheh and Yousef Abuwazaneh. If they can slow Galloway down, Al Nashama should be able to march into the Quarter-Finals.

Key Stats: Turnovers have been Iraq's bane in this competition. They average 16.0 a game, and that did not help them in their meltdowns against the Philippines and China. For them to keep in step with Jordan and be in a position to pull off an upset, they have to take much better care of the basketball. Jordan, on the other hand, have been pretty good at keeping their turnovers low. They are, in fact, the least prone to turnovers in the entire field, and that will be crucial in this knockout affair. If Jordan can force a ton of errors from Iraq, this match may be over quickly.

FIBA