ZOUK MIKAEL (Lebanon) - Donte McGill made his national team debut on the World Cup 2027 Asian Qualifiers stage one to remember, as Syria staved off a serious challenge by Iraq.
As the game entered an intense back-and-forth two-possession phase in the final minutes, McGill took over.
Donte dropped a dagger three-pointer and quickly followed with a crisp pass to an Omar Idelbi three-pointer in the span of just 20 seconds to blow open the lead for good.
Clutch plays made it a debut to remember indeed to cap off a big scoring game.
Player | Team | Points | Rebounds | Assists | 3PM | Steals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Donte McGill | Syria | 34 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 2 |
This game emphasized that it's not just the top-of-the-table battles that matter.
The bottom teams can make for equally compelling viewing, especially when they face off to avoid early elimination.
Coming into this game, both Syria and Iraq were nursing 0-2 records after a luckless first window.
With spots in the Second Round of the World Cup 2027 Asian Qualifiers for the top three teams from each group, this was a back-and-forth tussle to avoid being fourth.
Syria, with a world ranking of 72, are a dozen places above Iraq.
The game saw 9 lead changes and 6 ties, proving that there are never any 'easy' games in the World Cup 2027 Asian Qualifiers. Iraq battled hard against Syria - and even played through missing star Ramon Galloway due to a mid-game injury.
But eventually, Mc Gill's individual brilliance would prove too much for a Galloway-less Iraq to overcome.
FIBA