Overcoming a shaky start that saw them trail Malaysia by as many as 10 points five minutes into the contest, Taiwan mustered a huge run over the rest of the first quarter and went on to defeat Malaysia 109-62 in the final game of the second round at this year’s FIBA Asia Championship at the Wuhan Sports Complex in Wuhan, China, yesterday afternoon.
The win not only gave Taiwan a 2-1 record in the second round of Group E play, but more importantly it earned them a berth in the quarter-finals for a meeting tomorrow with the Philippines, who finished second behind China in Group F.
Behind three quick three-pointers by Guganeswaran Batumalai, Malaysia took a surprising 18-8 lead over the first five minutes of play, which forced Taiwan skipper Chou Jung-san to call a timeout.
The short stoppage of play worked wonders, as Taiwan retook the floor and rolled off a fierce 16-0 run for the remainder of the first quarter, championed by James Mao’s (Pure Youth Construction) seven points to take a 24-18 lead.
That was the spark Taiwan were looking for as they dominated the rest of the way with superb shooting, hitting 43 of 86 from the field, including a tournament-high 16 of 38 three-point attempts, to reel in the victory long before the final buzzer sounded.
Topping the fivesome of double-digit scorers for Taiwan was speedy guard Chang Tsung-hsien, whose game-high 25 points gave him a total of 87 in the half-dozen games played so far, good enough for No. 4 for total points scored in the tournament. Also worth noting was perimeter threat Lin Chih-chieh’s monstrous 21-point outburst, highlighted by six treys, to end the former Taiwan Beer standout’s slump.
As for Malaysia, Batumalai’s team-best 15 points, most of which came in the first quarter, was the lone highlight of the day, even though three of his teammates also reached double digits in scoring in a losing cause.
“It was a great all-around effort for us no matter how you look at it,” a relieved Chou said after the game.
His troops had not played up to their potential even in the games they had won prior to yesterday’s contest.
Next up for Taiwan will be a tough Philippines squad who pulled off a mild upset over previously unbeaten Japan in the second round to finish in second place in Group F. It will be an uphill battle for Taiwan, who suffered a disappointing 82-72 loss in their last meeting at the William Jones Cup tournament in Taipei last month.
Tipoff is scheduled for 1:30pm tomorrow at the Wuhan Sports Complex.
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