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| FIBA |
By Ivan Saldajeno
PASAY--Two nights after getting stifled against Canada, Turkey's Bobby Dixon went off to another slow start against Senegal before taking over in the dying moments to eliminate their opponents from FIBA OQT contention at the Mall of Asia Arena.
[Related Story: Turkey completes OQT semis cast with win against Senegal]
However, despite the successful clutch efforts, the American guard, who upon his Turkish naturalization took the name Ali Muhammed, was far from satisfied.
"I didn't play good today, either. I shot terrible. I made a couple of shots to get us a win, but I'm still not satisfied," Dixon, who only made six of 21 shots, said to some media men after the game.
He was actually ice-cold the first three-and-a-half periods, only making two of 13 attempts, but he fired up late, scoring 15 points in the last 3:48 of the game to finish with 23 points.
He, however, clarified, "I'm happy. I feel good that we won."
Coach Ergin Ataman, on the other hand, thought Dixon successfully bounced back from the one-point showing against Canada.
"He's our most experienced player. He's one of the best point guards in the Euroleague. We waited [for him to explode], and finally in the last quarter, he found his regular shots. He made the shots that are normal for him. Those are his shots, and we needed them to stay in the game. I hope that after this, he takes his confidence," Ataman assessed the performance of Dixon, who also had seven rebounds, four assists, and one steal.
Dixon could either face Tony Parker or the Webster Brothers in an exciting battle of the guards in the Saturday night match, but Dixon's eventual opponent will be determined by the New Zealand-France game, which is ongoing as of press time.
Ahead of the knockout match, Ataman said, "We need his offensive performance in the semifinals."
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