Jordan spoil Brownlee's big game to claim wins along with New Zealand, Saudi Arabia

BEIRUT (Lebanon) - New Zealand, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia wrap up the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 Asian Qualifiers with wins on their end as the build-up towards the World Cup begins.

Even though all the World Cup qualification spots from the Asian Qualifiers had been claimed, the teams in action put in their best efforts to end their campaigns on a high note.

The day started with the Tall Blacks fending off a furious rally by Lebanon to end up with a 109-91 win.

 

The Tall Blacks has built a firm cushion through the middle of the game that went to double-digits, but it turned out that Lebanon were not willing to give up easily. The Cedars held New Zealand to only 10 points in the third quarter while scoring 23 of their own to even take the lead.

Lebanon would hold on to that lead for less than a minute before New Zealand reclaimed the advantage for good. The Tall Blacks held Lebanon scoreless for nearly 9 minutes of the final 12 of the game, including the later parts of the third quarter.

The leader of Lebanon’s surging run was Amir Saoud who score 28 points on 10-18 shooting that included 4 three-pointers. Sergio El Darwich also had a big game with a personal Qualifiers-high 25 points and 4 steals.

New Zealand had five players in double-digit scoring and three players that scored over 20 points, including Isaac Fotu (23 points on 10-12 shooting), Jordan Ngatai (21 points), and Reuben Te Rangi (21 points).

Over in Bengaluru, Saudi Arabia were able to claim a consolation victory, beating India 71-60 to close out their first-ever World Cup Qualifiers run.

 

The young guns of India made it a tight game where the lead changed hands 10 times, but in the end, Saudi Arabia were able to overpower the home team.

The main force of their dominance was Mohammed Alsuwailem who had a double-double of 27 points and 10 rebounds, shining a bit of light on their bright future moving forward.

India had some bright spots to look forward down the road as well, most notably Arvind Kumar Muthu Krishnan who had another productive game, this time recording 24 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists.

The day - and the Asian Qualifiers - was capped off with an entertaining affair between Jordan and the Philippines at the Philippine Arena where the visitors escaped with a 91-90 victory.

 

Jordan had actually led by as much as 25 points in the first half, but Gilas roared back with run after run to make it a game down the stretch.

Ray Parks Jr. had the opportunity at a game winner at the buzzer, but the shot bounced off the background and found itself on the outside of the rim as the final buzzer sounded.

It was a heroic performance by Justin Brownlee - as he is accustomed to having in this venue - as he scored 41 points to tie the highest point total in a single game by a player in this World Cup Qualifiers across all regions. Brownlee also had 12 rebounds and 3 assists.

Jordan were off to a strong start with Freddie Ibrahim’s performance, as he ended the game with 19 points and  8 assists. Later in the game, it took a combined effort from the shooting of Dar Tucker (22 points, 12 rebounds), Ahmad Alhamarsheh (8 points, 8 rebounds), and Amin Abu Hawwas 98 points) to ensure a win for Jordan.

Turning points: Playing with emotion allows teams to go on spirited runs as Lebanon did against New Zealand, but too much of it can backfire as they were called for two technical fouls late in the fourth quarter. The Cedars were already down by 10 at that point, but it seemed to make sure that they would not be able to make another run after that.

At the 6-minute mark of the fourth quarter, Mohammed Alsuwailem made it back on to the court for Saudi Arabia against India when they were down by one point. From there, he scored 8 points and grabbed 4 rebounds as Saudi Arabia finished the game with an 18-6 run.

The game between the Philippines and Jordan went down to the wire, but the Philippines could have been up ahead or even tied in those final seconds if Scottie Thompson hit one of his free-throws. Both teams had already qualified so it wasn’t the end of the world for Gilas, but this will still be a tough pill to swallow for the star guard who otherwise had a well-rounded game of 9 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 assists.

Game Heroes: Hyrum Harris scored 8 of his 14 points in the final quarter while making 4 of his 5 shots in this game. New Zealand really had to cancel out Lebanon’s energy and Harris did just that.

Justin Brownlee was nearly the hero for the Philippines in this game, but instead it was Dar Tucker, who might have not made a significant big time shot, but was the steady piece down the stretch that Jordan needed as the Philippines closed in time and time again.

For Saudi Arabia, if it was clear enough before how important Mohammed Alsuwailem is important to them, it sure was clearer in their win against India as he was just unstoppable.

Stats don’t lie: New Zealand continues to be one of the best three-point shooting teams in the Asian Qualifiers, wrapping up this cycle with a 14-26 shooting performance from beyond the arc. Tough to beat a team when they are shooting like that, though Lebanon did put in a very good effort.

The glaring number from Saudi Arabia’s win that was a key factor once again shines light on Alsuwailem’s important. Saudi Arabia outscored India in the paint 42-26.

Jordan started the game shooting 11-17 from the three-point line and finished 4-27, which is why it was important for them to go 18-20 from the free-throw shooting line in a game that was decided by only one point. The Philippines on the other hand, left 5 points at the charity stripe as they shot 17-22.

FIBA