Saudi Arabia’s Al-Ittihad down Malaysia’s WKL Dragons 98-76 in FIBA Asia Championship Cup 2011
On Wednesday, in the round four of the FIBA Asia Championship Cup 2011, Darren Kelly and Vladislav Dragajlovic powered Saudi Arab’s Al Ittihad to a 98-76 victory over the WKL Dragons of Malaysia. Darren posted a game-high 36 points while Dragajlovic erupted with 32 points as Al Ittihad improved their record to 2-2 in the 2011 FIBA Asia Championship Cup. Dragajlovic was absolutely dominant on the glass as well and clutched 16 boards.
The Saudi’s took some time to settle down in the game however, there was no turning back once raced ahead in the second quarter.
Shee Fai Loh was the top scorer for the Malaysian team and finished the game with 19 points. Marcus A. Morrison showcased his talent once again, landing 17 points and also gathered 8 rebounds.
Both the teams headed out aggressively in the preliminary four minutes of the first quarter and the game was tied at 7-7. She Fai surged with a scorching blow from downtown to provide three points advantage to the KL Dragons at that point. However, Al Ittihad retaliated and despite of a skimpy defence in the first period, the team ended the quarter with 25-24 lead.
Nenad Krazdic, Al Ittihad’s coach said on the first quarter play, “We won and we won by a big margin. But I not happy the way we defended in the first quarter”
Al Ittihad ripped the Dragons apart in the second quarter and smashed them with 38 points to procure a comprehensive 63-42 lead going into the halftime.
The Saudi’s continued to rattle the Malaysians in the second half of the game and showed no signs of retreat. Their double figure lead was never relinquished in the last two quarters of the game and they ultimately handed a 22 points thrashing to the Malaysians, their fourth consecutive defeat of the tournament. Al Ittihad shot at nearly fifty percent from the field and also nailed 12-of-27 shots from the long range. On the night, they out-rebounded (44-35) and out-assisted (20-17) the Dragons and also beat them on the points in the paint, 44-28.
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