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Qatar puts the hurt on Jordan to stay perfect

Qatar improved to 3-0 in Group E of the 2013 FIBA Asia Championship with a workmanlike 75-61 win over their fellow Arab side on Monday morning at the Mall of Asia Arena.

A stifling defense from the tall Qataris held Jordan without a field goal for almost the first seven minutes of the fourth quarter.

Jordan's diminutive sniper, Wesam Alsous, started hot with eleven first quarter points off three treys. He knocked in another triple early in the second period then never got on the scoreboard again.

Alsous got little help from Jimmy Baxter, who had a very pedestrian morning, mustering only 12 points and egregiously muffing a free layup late in the fourth period.

Qatar had balanced scoring, with Jarvis Hayes (15 points) Yasseen Musa (14) Daoud Musa Daoud (14) Erfan Ali Saeed (10) and Mansour El Hadary (10) all reaching double figures.

ALSO READ: 2nd round and how things shape up for Gilas.

Qatar plays the Philippines tomorrow in a crucial match up for both sides.

With the first quarter score knotted at 23-23, it seemed like a shootout was in the offing. At the half Qatar led 42 – 38.

The teams traded baskets throughout the third quarter but Qatar finished strong with a trey from Baker Mohammed, another from Daoud, and a bucket from Hayes to finish the third period up 61-52.

A 10-4 Qatar run to begin the final period was enough to put Jordan in a hole they would never recover from.

Topscoring for Jordan was Ali Jamal Zaghab with fifteen points, but he fouled out in the fourth with an offensive foul.

The dreadlocked Daoud will likely be a headache for Gilas on Tuesday. The 31-year old veteran stands 6'4” and plays either of the guard spots well. His world-class vertical leap yielded him one blocked shot. He also knocked in two three-pointers.

ALSO READ: Gilas should be more physical – Belga.

While Tom Wisman's crew has their sights set on the Group E title, Jordan stumbles to 0-3 in the group and must now try to rebound in their next two games against Hong Kong and Japan if they want to reach the quarterfinals.


OTHER NOTES: One of the three referees in the game was Snehal Bendke of India. The 26-year old is one of two female officials in the tournament and is a former national player.... There is a large FIBA sticker in the middle of the court that has woodgrain in the sides, to cover the Mall of Asia logo while blending with the court. El Hadary slipped on it at one point while dribbling. That's the fourth player I have seen slip on that sticker in the tournament.... Hayes was cheered on by his family that included his wife, two young kids and two African -American gentlemen and another older African-American lady, who we can surmise are also relatives.... There was a delay to the start of the game when Yasseen Musa had to have his undershirt clipped. The match officials obviously felt it was sticking out past his jersey too much near the armholes... a small band of Jordanian fans were on hand to spur their team on. Near the end they could be heard yelling “wala na” whenever Qatar would attempt a free throw... Jordan's Khaldoon Abu-Ruqayyah injured his right leg and limped off in the second half, never to return.

Follow Bob on Twitter @bhobg333.