Ahli Lift Title
MANAMA: AL AHLI clinched their 12th title in the Bahrain/Batelco
Basketball League after a 63-56 win over last year's champions
Manama in a thrilling final at the Juffair Youth Centre.
Last night's third and decisive match was a perfect conclusion to
Bahrain's basketball season as the match lived up to expectations in
a gruelling battle.
But the star of this exciting fixture was Al Ahli's professional
Kevin Lan who inspired his team throughout the match.
The 2.10-metre Canadian, who was the top scorer with 24 points, made
several crucial defensive rebounds and scored eight points in the
final quarter which helped Al Ahli regain the title they last won in
1989.
Other Al Ahli players who played a major role were Hussain Shaker -
with 14 points, including three three-pointers, US professional
Jamal Holden (11), Sayed Hashim Habib (8), Mohammed Qurban (5) and
Nedhal Abbas (3).
On the other hand, there was much disappointment for Manama
supporters who saw their team take an early lead before going down
in the last quarter.
The top performer for the 15-time champions was Mohammed Hussain who
managed 12 points along with US professional Franklin James.
Manama were also represented by experienced captain Nooh Najaf (11),
Mahmood Ghuloom (10), Mohammed Najaf (7), Ahmed Qahiri and Hassan
Ibrahim (2 each).
Al Ahli had a good start, leading 12-6 early in the first quarter
with Habib scoring seven points but Manama fought back in the last
stages for a 13-12 lead at the end of the quarter thanks to Nooh's
three-pointer with less than a minute remaining.
In the second quarter, Al Ahli again showed good defence and strong
finishing as they went ahead by five points with Lan managing six
points and Holden four.
However, Al Ahli failed to maintain their momentum and started to
lose their poise, giving Manama the opportunity to take a 27-24 lead
at half-time following contributions from Nooh who scored six
consecutive points in this quarter.
Al Ahli, under Nigerian coach Fredrick Femi, made another strong
impact in the third quarter when they took a six-point lead with
Shaker giving his best contributions, scoring three three-pointers
which saw his side go ahead 48-43.
Holden, who was unsuccessful early in the match, was also brilliant
with eight points in this quarter while Lan boosted Al Ahli's lead
with eight points.
Fortunate
Manama's US coach Stacy Neal gave new directives to his players
before the start of the final quarter and the team played more
aggressively.
However, Manama were set back after three of their best players -
James, Nooh and Mohammed - were on four fouls each and their
influence on the rest of the match waned.
Al Ahli, on the other hand, were relying on their giant Lan who was
fortunate with his individual efforts, scoring eight points, five of
which came in the last two minutes of the match.
With one minute and 16 second remaining and Al Ahli leading by six
points, Manama changed their strategy but their title dreams were
shattered in the last 30 seconds when Al Ahli held on to their lead
much to the joy of their supporters and officials.
The match was held under the patronage of Bahrain Basketball
Association president Shaikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Khalifa who
presented the trophy to the winners at the awarding ceremony.
The start of the match was delayed by half an hour to clear
spectators who had occupied the VIP seating area.
