Reality check finally dawned on Smart Gilas Pilipinas Saturday night: Winning the William Jones Cup basketball tournament meant going through Hamed Haddadi and the
rest of two-time defending champions Iran.

The Nationals came short of accomplishing the feat.

The 7-foot-2 Haddadi proved to be a force to reckon with, shooting 14-of-22 from the field en route to a game-high 36 point production as Iran walloped Smart Gilas, 78-59, and marched into the finals of the annual cage meet for the third straight time Saturday at the Hsinjhuang Stadium in New Taipei City.

Haddadi, the Memphis Grizzlies back up center, already had 22 points in the first half alone, when the Iranians, also the two-time defending FIBA-Asia men's champions, ripped the game apart on the way to arranging a winner-take-all showdown with Korea on Sunday.

The Koreans earlier subdued host Chinese-Taipei in overtime, 90-85, to earn a finals date with Iran.

"We are better with Haddadi around. Without him, it's a different story," said Iran coach Veselin Matic, "Haddadi helped us, played really competitive and wants to win with his energy."

The Nationals, a 73-59 winner over Iran in the eliminations, will now take on the Taiwanese for the battle for third place, the highest finish the country will achieve since the 1998 Centennial Team of coach Tim Cone won the championship in 1998.

"We have to be satisfied although its tough to play nine straight games," admitted Gilas coach Rajko Toroman. "We're using this event to prepare for Wuhan and our performance here showed that we could play against anybody in Asia."

Marcus Douthit finished with 16 points to lead the Nationals, who played without starting guard JV Casio for the second straight game due to a swollen left knee.

Although trailing, the Nationals ended the first half on a better note by cutting a 17-point deficit to just 27-36 at the break as Barroca scored the final basket on a breakaway lay up.

Barroca, getting extended minutes in the absence of Casio, carried the fight for the struggling Nationals in the first 20 minutes of play by scoring 10 points on 5-of-8 shooting.

Haddadi, meanwhile, was a source of strength inside for the Iranians, already with 22 points by the half as he shot 9-of-15 from the floor.

At one point, he even matched the total output of Gilas as his basket underneath gave the two-time champion a 36-22 lead with two minutes left in the second period.

The Iranian center also stood at the helm of the team's lopsided 26-12 edge over the Nationals in rebounding during the opening half.

Iran rattled off seven unanswered points to take control of the match early, before settling on a 20-11 lead at the end of the first quarter..
 

Scores:

Iran 78 - Haddadi 36, Sahakian 16, Davari 9, Barogh 6, Davoudichegani 3, Davaranahfard 3, Veisi 2, Kardoust 2, Nabipoor 1, Rouzbahani 0.

Smart Gilas Pilipinas 59 - Douthit 16, Barroca 10, Lassiter 10, Hontiveros 6, Tiu 5, Aguilar 5, Taulava 2, Lutz 0.

Quarter scores: 20-11; 36-27; 56-38; 78-59.

August 14 Game Schedules:
Battle for 5th: Japan vs. Jordan (3:00pm)
Battle for 3rd: Philippines vs. Chinese Taipei (5:00pm) Live on ESPN & AKTV-IBC13
Finals: South Korea vs. Iran (7:00pm) Live on ESPN & AKTV-IBC13 

source: JVP, GMA News