Five takeaways from the FIBA U16 Asian Quarter-Finals

FOSHAN (FIBA U16 Asia Championship) - It was an action-packed Quarter-Finals Day at the FIBA U16 Asia Championship, and we will unpack it by looking at takeaways from the exciting games.

Here are five things that stood out from the four Quarter-Finals fixtures.

Underdogs can win

Both New Zealand and the Philippines came in as relative underdogs, especially since they had already lost one game each and had to go through the Qualification to the Quarter-Finals on Day 4. Their opponents - Iran and Japan respectively - both swept their own groups and had one day's rest to get as ready as possible for today's knockout matches. Still, despite having less rest, the Junior Tall Blacks and Batang Gilas both powered through and pulled off upsets. New Zealand leaned on their heft, with burly forwards Mitch Dance and Jake McKinlay having their way. The Philippines, meanwhile, exploited their size advantage to the hilt, pounding Japan's interior to submission.

Don’t sleep on Tom Cowie

One other main reason for New Zealand's big win was the play of floor general Tom Cowie. Cowie actually went down with a slight injury early in the game, but he returned to give the Junior Tall Blacks the spark they needed to complete their big win. He is not the most high profile player on New Zealand's roster, but the 6ft 0in (1.84m) guard has certainly been doing a lot of damage for the Junior Tall Blacks. Today was his best work, though, when he dropped 17 points, 5 assists, 2 rebounds, 2 blocks, 1 steal and 3 triples on Iran. He is surely someone Australia will need to keep in check in the Semi-Finals.

Wani when it counts

Speaking of Australia, they probably would have been on the wrong end of an upset today had it not been for the clutch play of Wani Swaka Lo Buluk. The 6ft 5in (1.95m) guard has tremendously great size for someone who plays either guard position, and he has repeatedly shown that in this tournament when putting the clamps on much smaller opponents. Against Korea today, he pumped in two triples, sank a mirange J and cruised for a layup in the fourth quarter to ensure Australia's safe passage to the Semi-Finals and a berth at the U17 World Cup. He hasn't been as consistently productive as, say, Kobe Williamson, but this kid can definitely produce when it counts the most.

Kai Sotto is a beast

Sotto was one of most heralded players coming into the competition, and for a while, it seemed like all the hype worked against him because all his opponents were raring and ready to give him a hard time. Today agaisnt the erstwhile unbeaten Japanese, however, the 7ft 1in (2.16m) Filipino giant reminded everyone why he's considered a gem of a talent back home in Manila. Sotto towered over the Akatsuki Five, scoring 28 points, collaring 21 rebounds, dishing out 3 assists and blocking 3 shots on his way to carrying Batang Gilas to the U17 World Cup. If this one game was the main indicator of Sotto's potential, then, boy, it sure seems like the sky is the limit for this Filipino skyscraper.

Jiao Boqiao is legit

And since we're on the subject of skyscrapers, China have their own proud young big man who also turned a lot of heads today in the Quarter-Finals. This, of course, is none other than Jiao Boqiao. The 6ft 10in (2.08m) slotman finally made a big impact for the hosts, tossing in 19 points on 6-of-11 field goal shooting while pulling down 14 boards. He has surely not been as productive as previous ballyhooed Chinese bigs like Zhou Qi and Hu Jinqiu, but with two more games to go, he has a lot of chances to still put up big numbers. And the most exciting thing? We'll get to see him match up with the Philippines' Kai Sotto in the Semi-Finals. Possibly two of Asia's next great big men dueling in a knockout match? Where do we sign up?

FIBA