KAZ - Kazaks confirm they are in Manila to medal

MANILA (FIBA Asia Championship/FIBA Basketball World Cup) - When Kazakhstan topped Group C in the Preliminary Round of the FIBA Asia Championship with a perfect 3-0 record, there weren't declarations of a new contender on the horizon, just questions.

Could a country who have made the final four just once be the real deal? Had they played in an easy group? Could they stand the pressure of Asia's best teams?

So while they could easily be heartbroken after their last-minute defeat to China to open the Second Round on Monday, the reality in the Kazakhstan camp is quite the opposite.

"Today we had a great game," said guard Rustam Yargaliyev.

"Before the game we had great preparation to play China, we had great scouting, and I think we did everything we were supposed to do."

Although they didn't get the win, according to coach Matteo Boniciolli, the Kazaks answered the questions that were hanging over their heads.

"At the beginning of the game I told my players this was a game with two goals," he said.

"The second goal to show we didn't come here for a vacation but to try and get a medal has been confirmed."

While they fell six points short of the first goal - winning the game - their coach seemed sure the way they played will springboard his team into clashes with Korea and Iran.

"We came in to play against a team with NBA players, a legendary coach, a great tradition of basketball and behind them a great country of over a billion people, and we were 65-65 two minutes from the end," Boniciolli pointed out.

After trailing by 10 points with just over seven minutes remaining, Kazakhstan turned the screws, forcing three turnovers in two minutes as they put their noses in front.

While point guard Jerri Jonson was playing at extreme pace, the whole team showed great poise, picking and choosing their times to attack and keeping China on the back foot.

Impressively, the Kazaks won the rebound count 38-33 against a much taller opponent, allowed just six second chance points, gave up only 12 turnovers and 11 points from turnovers, looking every bit a seasoned outfit.

"The players respected the game plan," Boniciolli said.

"Fast-break decisions, defense decisions, pick-and-roll decisions, even being able to change our defense in the last minute."

Yargaliyev was perhaps most impressed with his team's deliberate approach when challenged, something that will be required to beat the big names in the knockout stages and progress to the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup.

"We had a goal today to establish ourselves and show we could play against one of the strongest teams in Asia, and we did it well," he said.

For full and in-depth coverage of the 2013 FIBA Asia Championship, go to the official website http://manila2013.fibaasia.net.

FIBA