TEHRAN (Iran) - Al-Ittihad Ahli saw themselves on the wrong side of FIBA West Asia Super League (WASL) history after losing to Shahrdary Gorgan on the road on Wednesday night.

The Syrian powerhouse became the team that the reigning three-time Iran champions poured the most points to in a single game, 121-70, leaving head coach Safouani Ferjani disappointed, especially with his charges' defense, or a lack thereof.

"We were soft on defense," the veteran mentor lamented during the postgame presser at the Azadi Basketball Hall.  "They gave us 121 points. It's a lot for us."

The affair was expected to be a dogfight, with both teams vying for pole position in the West Asia League's Group A following impressive wins in their respective season openers: Gorgan, for one, beat Sagesse in wire-to-wire fashion, while Al-Ittihad downed Al Naft.

But that didn't happen, with the game already lopsided as early as the second quarter when Will Cherry and the visitors pulled off a 16-0 run en route to a 50-25 lead.

The middle chapters witnessed the game's total reversal from initial projections. Gorgan scored a total of 66 points in the second and third to be in cruise control all the way.

Much of their offense came from beyond the arc. They made a total of 17 three-pointers, now the most by a team in the West Asia League—just two shy of the all-time record set by Al Riyadi in their win over Beirut Club in the maiden FIBA WASL Final 8 last June in Dubai.

It's also the way Al-Ittihad took care of the basketball, which frustrated veteran guard Nadim Issa. They committed 23 turnovers, which their foes turned into 34 big points.

"We made a lot of turnovers. They only made 11 turnovers; we had 23. They shot 51 percent from the three-point line. That's too much," said the 33-year-old, who had 14 points.

Despite the litany of things they rued, Ferjani still tipped his hat to the players, particularly the younger ones, which he utilized to help spike confidence heading back to their domestic league.

"We think more about the next game; it is a very important game for us. So for the last six, seven minutes, I played with the young guys, the under-21 players," he disclosed. "I'm happy even if the loss was big. I'm happy with the spirit of the young guys."

Issa seconded his coach. "We tried to give them more minutes because even though we push as hard as we can against Gorgan, we may end up short at the end," he said.

"We have a tough league game in a couple of days," Issa continued, "so we have to make the rotation and try to build some confidence for the young players."

FIBA