TEHRAN (FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 Asian Qualifiers) - Led by Hamed Haddadi and Samad Nikkhah Bahrami, Iran just proved to be too high-powered as they thrashed Iraq in the second window.

Team Melli successfully got payback on the Iraqis, who upset the Iranians in the first window of the Asian Qualifiers. Haddadi led the way with 15 points, 9 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 blocked shots, while fellow veteran Bahrami added 16 points, 7 assists, 4 boards and 3 three-pointers in the lopsided affair.

On the other end, Hassan Abdullah paced Iraq with a dozen points, while naturalized wingman DeMario Mayfield had 11 points, but he shot a poor 4-of-16 from the field in 37 minutes of action. Mayfield scored all his points in the first half and was shutdown by Iran in the last two quarters.

Iraq actually started with a ton of energy and aggressiveness, even leading at the end of the first ten minutes, 22-21, but the home team cranked up their level of play in the second and third quarters, where they outscored Iraq, 43-23, and effectively put the game out of reach.

This win puts Iran at the very top of Group D with a 3-1 win-loss record, while the Iraqis fall to fourth place with a 1-3 record below Qatar, which beat them a few days ago.

Iran will gun for two more wins in the third window, where they will face Qatar and Kazakhstan, while Iraq will fight for their lives against the same opponents this coming June and July.

FIBA