Spoiling first-half leads as large as nine points, Taiwan completely fell apart in a dismal second half to drop their quarter-final contest against the Philippines 95-78 at this year’s FIBA Asia Championship in Wuhan, China, last night.
The loss not only denied Taiwan a chance to compete for the gold, but it also earned them a very tough meeting against two-time defending champions Iran, who were upset by Jordan in their quarter-final match earlier yesterday — virtually bumping Taiwan out of contention for a fifth-place finish.
A successful defensive scheme against Philippines center Marcus Douthit, coupled with a smooth start by the offense, gave Taiwan a surprising 23-14 lead late in the opening frame.
Photo: AFP
However, the hard-earned lead would dwindle to only four by the end of the first (23-19), with the Philippines netting five unanswered points in the final two minutes of the quarter.
Taiwan were able to fend off the Philippines after their lead fell to a single point two minutes into the second quarter with a 12-5 run on the inside play of Tseng Wen-ding and the three-point shooting of Lin Chih-chieh to reclaim a 39-31 lead with four minutes remaining in the half.
However, that was as long as they could hang with the Philippines, with the Philippines offense getting into their groove from that point on, rolling off a 14-3 run to close out the half with a 45-42 advantage.
Trouble continued for Taiwan in the second half with Douthit showing off his inside moves to help his team build a commanding 15-point lead.
To make matters worse for Taiwan, they would lose point guard Lin Hsueh-lin to injury midway through the third quarter and eventually Tseng to five personal fouls in the fourth, sealing their fate long before the final buzzer sounded.
Tseng left the game with a team-high 20 points and five rebounds, while teammates Chen Hsin-an and Lu Cheng-ju chipped in 14 and 12 points respectively.
As for the Philippines, Douthit’s game-high 37 points was the difference in the game as the former US standout (naturalized to Philippine citizenship earlier this year) dominated inside the paint by converting 13 of 24 from close range (eight of 10 from the free-throw line) with 10 rebounds to send his team into the semi-finals.
Next up for Taiwan in the consolation round will be a tough Iranian squad who will look to alleviate their frustration with a win.
Tipoff is scheduled for 1:30pm at the Wuhan Sports Complex.
MARRED FINAL: As most of Senegalese players walked off the pitch after a controversial decision, some supporters threw objects and attempted to get onto the pitch Senegal on Sunday won the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) as Pape Gueye’s extra-time winner sunk hosts Morocco 1-0 after a chaotic final that saw the eventual champions storm off the pitch late in the game. Brahim Diaz could have won the trophy for Morocco with a controversial spot-kick in the 24th minute of added time at the end of normal time as ugly scenes broke out in the stands. However, Senegal goalkeeper Edouard Mendy easily saved the weak attempted “Panenka” chip by the Real Madrid winger, who was clearly distracted by the long delay that followed the penalty award.
James Harden on Friday scored 31 points and came up big in overtime to help the Los Angeles Clippers erase a double-digit deficit on the way to a 121-117 NBA victory over the Toronto Raptors. Harden scored 16 points in the fourth quarter and overtime as the Clippers pushed their wining steak to five games despite the absence of star Kawhi Leonard with a sprained right ankle. The Clippers trailed by 11 entering the fourth quarter, but Harden drilled a pair of free-throws with 1:24 left in regulation to tie it and after misses from both teams, they went to
Dallas Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg on Wednesday was ruled out for the second half of their 118-109 loss to the Denver Nuggets after the No. 1 pick sprained his left ankle in the first half. Flagg was called for a foul while defending against Peyton Watson and turned the ankle as he fell to the floor with 6 minutes, 1 second left in the second quarter. Flagg limped to the bench and continued to the locker room, but returned for the final 2 minutes, 35 seconds before the break. The 19-year-old did not come out for the second half before the announcement that
Yassine Bounou on Wednesday saved two penalties, while Youssef en-Nesyri netted the decisive spot-kick as hosts Morocco secured a 4-2 shoot-out victory over Nigeria following a 0-0 draw in a tense Africa Cup of Nations semi-final in Rabat. Morocco, seeking their first continental title in 50 years, are to face 2021 winners Senegal in Sunday’s decider in Rabat, while Nigeria take on Egypt in the third-place playoff tomorrow. The 120 minutes before the shoot-out had few clear-cut chances for either side, but it was Morocco who created more opportunities, although they were denied by some fine saves from Nigeria goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali. Nigeria
RSS