BLEACHERS BREW EST. MAY 2006

Someone asked me how my blog and newspaper column came to be titled "Bleachers Brew". It's like this, it's an amalgam of sorts of two things: The bleachers area in the stadium/arena where I used to sit when I would watch baseball, football, and basketball games and Miles Davis' great jazz album Bitches Brew. That's how it got culled together. I originally planned on calling it "The View from the Big Chair" that is a nod to Tears For Fear's second album, Songs from the Big Chair. So there.

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

And Iran happened along


For a while I thought the RP Team forgot to pack their jumpshot. In fact, I was about to ask Kerby Raymundo, James Yap, and Jared Dillinger about it.

Now that they were making them – 16 triples out of 43 attempts – I had to wonder if I was watching the Orlando Magic. Except that this tournament’s version of Dwight Howard was playing for the Iran.

The Iranian version of GI Joe’s Roadblock was Hamed Ehadadi, the 7-foot-2 giant who made Asi Taulava look like a smurf. Okay so the Fil-Tongan will never be mistaken for such but man, the size of that Iranian center.

Anytime he can put the ball on the floor and power his way through… hey, Mike Heisley… you have to make sure this guy gets playing time. Tell your coach, dammit.

Ehadadi scored 17 points in the first half as the Filipinos tried double and triple coverage on him. When he found his path to the basket blocked, he tossed it out to Samad Bahrami or Mahdi Karmany as the Iranians shot 59 percent from the field. They dropped four triples that spurred them to a 24-point lead and a 51-34 advantage at the half.

Holding the Nationals to 38 percent from the floor in the first 20 minutes, their inside strength also reduced the RP team to fouling as the Iranians hit 13 of 18 free throws. Such was the intimidation of Ehadadi that the Philippines only went to the free throw line four times and made two shots.

But the Philippines brought down the huge lead to nine when they rained down triples on their taller foes in the second half who were slow to guard the pick and roll. James Yap, Willie Miller, Jared Dillinger, and Jayjay Helterbrand presided over the artillery barrage but it wasn’t enough as their guns fell silent at crunch time.

Scores:

IRAN 88 – Nikkah Bahrami 25, Ehadadi 21, Kamrany 14, Sahakian 11, Davari 10, Afagh 5, Tadjik 2, Davoudichegani 0, Doraghi 0.

RP 78 – Yap 14, Miller 14, Norwood 13, Baguio 11, Dillinger 9, Helterbrand 9, Thoss 4, Pennisi 3, Taulava 1, Raymundo 0, Aguilar 0, Santos 0.

Quarters: 27-14; 51-34; 74-58; 88-78

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