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| Carlin Davison goes for the dunk. LA Arcin |
PASAY—Sam Waardenburg saved the day for New Zealand as he put up a solid clutch performance defensive to preserve his team's 93-91 overtime win against Iran to start the Philippine leg of the FIBA World Cup Qualifiers August window on Friday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
In a game where both teams struggled to hit their free throws down the stretch, Waardenburg, who had to exert more effort with Sam Mennenga fouling out in regulation, first blocked Mohammad Amini's layup attempt.
Alireza Sharifi recovered the loose ball, but a momentary fumble before securing the offensive rebound bought some time for Waardenburg to get back defensively and challenge Sharifi's putback.
Sharifi missed his follow-up, and Carlin Davison grabbed the game-saving rebound.
Shea Ili led New Zealand, which tied Iran in Group E at 5-2, with 24 points on 6 of 10 shooting, one rebound, six assists, and two steals.
Mennenga added 15 points on 7 of 11 field goals, 14 rebounds, and one block.
Matin Aghajanpour led Iran with 19 markers, three rebounds, one assist, and one steal.
