Quarterfinal action of the 2013 FIBA Asia Championship begins early Friday morning, with top-seeded Iran taking on Jordan. There will be three other quarterfinal matchups to follow to determine who will meet in the semifinals. Two “classification” games will take place before the quarterfinals, with the first starting late Thursday night.
2013 FIBA Asia schedule: Iran, Philippines the top seeds as quarterfinals get underway
Former Suns and Grizzlies big man Hamed Haddadi has led Iran to an undefeated record in the 2013 FIBA Asia Championship as the quarterfinals get underway on Friday. The host Philippines are the other top seed in the tournament.
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Let’s take a brief look at all of the games, with all times Eastern:
Iran (6-0) vs. Jordan (3-3), 3 a.m.
Iran has run roughshod through the tournament thus far, not losing a single game and winning every contest by double digits. Iran has been led by Hamed Haddadi, who's averaging 17.2 points, 8.7 rebounds and 1.7 blocks. Haddadi played sparingly for the Memphis Grizzlies and Phoenix Suns last year. Jordan is led by Jimmy Baxter, who hails from Florida.
Chinese Taipei (5-1) vs. China (4-2), 5:45 a.m.
Chinese Taipei nabbed the second seed in Group E with their 5-1 overall record. Quincy Davis, originally from California, is averaging 13.0 points and 9.7 rebounds for Chinese Taipei. China is 4-2 despite not having the services of Yi Jianlian for several games. Jianlian scored 23 points in the first game of the tournament, but he proceeded to miss the next four games before returning to play on Wednesday in China's dominant win over Bahrain.
Philippines (5-1) vs. Kazakhstan (3-3), 8:30 a.m.
The host Philippines earned the No. 1 seed in Group E thanks to their win over Hong Kong on Wednesday. New York native Marcus Douthit leads the home team with averages of 14.7 points, 10.3 rebounds and 2.0 blocks. Kazakhstan enters the quarterfinals on a two-game losing streak. Pennsylvania native Jerry Johnson leads the team with averages of 15.4 points and 6.0 assists.
Korea (5-1) vs. Qatar (4-1), 10:30 a.m.
Korea is rolling into the quarterfinals, having won their three second-round games by a combined 110 points. Cho Sung-min leads Korea in scoring with 13.0 points per game. Qatar enters the quarterfinals on the heels of a narrow win over Chinese Taipei. Former University of Georgia standout Jarvis Hayes has been the star for Qatar, scoring 18.0 points per game thus far in the tournament.
Classification games
Before the quarterfinals, there are two games part of the consolation bracket. Late Thursday night, Bahrain will take on Hong Kong at 10:30 p.m. Bahrain is 2-4, while Hong Kong is winless at 0-5. The next game is between Japan and India at 12:45 a.m. on Friday morning. Both teams have just one win in the tournament.
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