Jordan 70

strong second half to finish with 17 points (7/10 FG) and nine boards (six off the offensive glass), Jordan Ngatai chipped in with 10 points and big man Sam Timmins added nine points and 11 rebounds and was sound on defence in the paint.

Skipper Reuben Te Rangi’s contribution was also significant. He had nine points (3/6 FG, 2/4 3PT) and seven assists and was a key playmaking option for his team in the first half as they put their opponents into an early hole.

The Tall Blacks shot well (49 percent overall, 37 from deep and 19 of 21 from the line), dominated the boards (44-24) and found the open man brilliantly, with 26 assists on their 34 made buckets. They continue to impress with a maturity and poise in their game that belies their tender experience.

Henare’s men dominated the first half, opening out a 21-12 lead after the first quarter and extending it to a decisive 50-38 by the halftime break.

They did it by shooting efficiently – an outstanding 53 percent for the half – attacking the boards (19-10 overall and 9-3 off the offensive glass) and earning 10 more field goal attempts than their opponents.

The New Zealanders were paced by quality first-half efforts by Ili (11 points, four assists) and Smith-Milner (12 points, three rebounds), while Te Rangi revelled in the playmaking role, picking up six assists to go with seven points.

The Jordanians would have been even further adrift but for an outstanding 20 first-half points from sharpshooting guard Mah’d Abdeen who went seven-of-eight from the floor and four-of-four from deep, and added four assists for good measure. He finished with a game-high 24 points after being much better contained over the run home.

Earlier Andrej Lemanis’ Australian Boomers crushed China 97-71 to book their spot in the semifinals.

‘‘Australia will be exciting,’’ McMains said.

‘‘It is going to be a fun matchup. It’s what everyone wants. We have a day and a half to get ready for them.’’