Bengaluru, 15th July 2017: The Indian men’s basketball team lost to Iraq’s National Team 68-86 on the first day of the William Jones Cup, but there were many positives to draw from the performance. The Indians raced to an early lead after the end of the first quarter, but relinquished it after being outscored 28-13 in the second quarter.
Forward Amjyot Singh Gill continued his good form from the BRICS Games, with 22 points and 6 rebounds. He was also money from downtown making 4 of 6 from beyond the arc.
There were also enthusing displays from youngsters Gurvinder Singh Gill (10 points and 5 rebounds) and Ambati Prudhvishwar Reddy (11 points and 4 assists). Collectively, the Indian team’s shooting from three point range was very impressive, as they made 12 three pointers on a 55% conversion rate.
India though will need to work on reducing its turnovers (33) as it takes on South Korea’s National Team on 16th July at 1100 hrs CST (0830 IST).
Iraq (Demaro Aquan Mayfield 19 pts, Ali Hamad 17 pts, Omar Alazawi 15 pts) bt India (Amjyot Singh Gill 22 pts, Ambati Prudhvishwar Reddy 11 pts, Gurvinder Singh Gill 10 pts) 86–68 [11-19, 28-13, 32-24, 15-12]
