Malaysia beat Japan 106 - 79 in their second group match yesterday. Both teams used similar tactics against each other which was to put more offensive focus inside the paint with both also opted for Man-To-Man marking. There were some surprise national call-ups prior to the game, with NOT's PF, Rozmin and foreign-based SG, Safri being included in the team at the last minute.
It was clear that the Malaysian players were the more energetic ones on the court from the start. No one knows just where those Malaysian players got their energy from. May be it's from the opponents' cheerleading line where a few audiences spotted that there were a bunch of famous Japanese AV models cheering their team on. Eager to impress the ladies, the Malaysians threw everything on the pitch. It proved to be the difference and it was a one-way result at the break, in which Malaysia led by 21 ponts.
There were some notable performances by our SG, Kwu, who did not do too well last week against UAE. Although this time, he was also shut down by his more established opposite number, Japanese star SG, Okita, he still managed to contribute 6 assists in the 1st Quarter alone! At the half-time break, he had already captured 12 poins and 8 assists. The lads were so happy for him. They knew that he had trained very, very hard for the past one week to redeem himeself after last game's humiliating display. Our Centre, Halim, however continued to show his fiery character on the field and was whistled three times in the 1st half. His able deputy, Mustaffa, was quick on his feet again and played admirably for the team.
The Japanese showed that they are not easy push-overs, as they bounced back in the 3rd quarter and tried to stage a fight back. But the Malaysians held firm, and gave a solid performance to hold on to the 20-point lead. Halim got his fourth personal foul early in the 3rd quarter and was sent to the bench by the coach immediately. Mustaffa was in good form and ended the game on a high with a double-double record. He had 19 points and 12 rebounds to his name. Another consistent player, PG Samsul, topped the Malaysia's scoring chart with 27 points and also bagged 6 rebounds. Kwu felt like he had swapped roles with Samsul in this game as he finished with career-high 11 assists and helped chipped in 14 points.
Japan's best performer was Centre Kouzuki, with 24 points and 15 rebounds. SG Okita also had a good game by scoring 19 points and 5 assists.
Last-minute NT inclusions, Rozmin who was charted to play as SF, played well with 14 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists to show for, whereas sub-SF, Safri was equally impressive with 6 assists and 4 rebounds in just 15 minutes of play.
Team captain, Ithnin, told the press after the game, "We have played a good game against a good side. They have some very fine big guys who can caused us problems under the basket, but we showed that we can also defend well in the paint. Everybody played well today, and we felt like we were passing the ball better today without giving away too many turn-overs. Yeah, it's a good feeling to win again.". First choice Centre, Halim, walked away angrily from the cameras without saying a word, when asked by a cheeky reporter on how much money had he received as bribe to produce such a dismal game.
Team coach, Ahmoi, told the press later that he will review the videos to see if Halim was actually at fault to all the fouls he gave away in that game. He said, "If the fouls were intentional, I will order him to shave his afro head to 'botak'!!".
That's all for the NT Update this week.
Next up, China.