Basketball
GUAM DROPS ASIA CUP DEBUT TO IRAN
History made in highest level of competition
By Jay Leon Guerrero
History was made on Wednesday night in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, with the Guam Men’s National Basketball team making its debut in the FIBA Asia Cup.
It’s another milestone for the Guam Team just to play amongst Asia’s best in a 16-team tournament with 4 groups. Guam’s group, group B, opened their pool play with Guam dropping its opener to Iran 77-52.
Despite the large margin of victory, the Guam Team showed resilience and got within 11 points in the final period before Iran pulled away.
Head coach EJ Calvo said: “I’m proud of our adjustment and fight to make it a game going into the 4th.”
“We felt good until they hit two 3-pointers in a row and the game got away from us. It was still an excellent experience for us before a big game versus Syria,” added Calvo.
Guam will have one day of rest before playing Syria on Friday. Both teams enter the contest 0-1 and the winner will likely advance to have a chance to play for a spot in the quarterfinals.
Tai Wesley led Guam with 18 points and 9 rebounds. Jericho Cruz, who led the comeback in the third quarter, finished with 11 points and 4 rebounds.
Guam outscored Iran 22-11 in the third quarter before the two 3-pointers were hit to put the game out of reach.
The Syria game will be key for Guam, with Syria ranked 13th in the power rankings compared to Guam’s 16th rank. Guam’s final game will be against 2nd-ranked Japan.
