MVP: Gabe Muoneke (200-F-78) of Saba
Best Guard: Eric Chatfield (191-G-79) of Rayyan
Best Forward: Gabe Muoneke of Saba
Best Center: Herve Lamizana (208-F/C-81) of Wasl
Best Import Player: Gabe Muoneke of Saba
Best Domestic Player: Fadi El Khatib (197-F-79) of Riyadi
Best Coach: Mehran Tab Shain of Saba
1st Team
DaJuan Tate (196-G/F-81) of Saba
Eric Chatfield of Rayyan
Gabe Muoneke
Championship Game
SABA Battery - Rayyan 82:75
The Iranian powerhouse SABA Battery clinched the second straight Asia Champions Cup title yesterday. They overpowered Qatari Rayyan in the championship game in Kuwait. The game turned into a dramatic contest with the sides keeping it on level terms for the major part of the game. However DaJuan Tate (196-G/F-81, college: Mountain St.) accounted for a couple of key points in the dying minutes to propel the SABA Battery to an impressive success.
Championship Game
SABA Battery - Rayyan 82:75 The Iranian powerhouse SABA Battery clinched the second straight Asia Champions Cup title yesterday. They overpowered Qatari Rayyan in the championship game in Kuwait. The game turned into a dramatic contest with the sides keeping it on level terms for the major part of the game. However DaJuan Tate (196-G/F-81, college: Mountain St.) accounted for a couple of key points in the dying minutes to propel the SABA Battery to an impressive success. SABA Battery and Rayyan exchanged the blows early in the encounter with the Iranian outfit grabbing a 16:15 lead at the first intermission. Rayyan relied on solid performance from Eric Chatfield (191-G-79, college: N.Mexico) to regain the control over the game in the second quarter. Rayyans American import came up with 15 points in the frame and Qatari team claimed a 10-point advantage at halftime. The things changed radically in the third stanza and SABA Battery started to claw their way back. DaJuan Tate and Gabe Muoneke (200-F-78, college: Texas) teamed up to ignite a 32:14 rally that put SABA in front 61:53 after three quarters of action. Eric Chatfield came up with a trey to tie it all at 68 late in regulation. DaJuan Tate answered with 7 straight points to carry SABA to safe distance and they ensured the winning outcome at the end. DaJuan Tate scored 30 points to lead all scorers. Gabe Muoneke added 26 points, while Hamed Hadadi (218-C-85, agency: Huss Sport Agency) nailed 18 points for the winners. Eric Chatfield knocked down 29 points to pace Rayyan. Yaseen Ismail (204-F-80) accounted for 15 points and Dalron Johnson (206-F-81, college: UNLV) had 13 in defeat.
Wasl - Riyadi 87:82 Al Wasl stepped on the pedestal as they outgunned Riyadi in the Bronze medals final yesterday. The victory marked a historic event for the Emirates basketball as Wasl became the first ever team from the country to grab medals at the Asia Champions Cup. Riyadi meanwhile returned to the event after a 10-year pause and failed to overcome the result that achieved in Kuala Lumpur in 1998 (Bronze medals). The Lebanese team got to an aggressive start and cleared off to a 29:20 distance at the end of the first frame. However Ivorian import Herve Lamizana (208-F/C-81, college: Rutgers) stepped up for Wasl and paced them back into fight. Wasl trimmed the gap to 3 points at halftime as the tension mounted. The teams traded baskets in what turned out to be a seesaw third frame. Still Wasl found the way to jump in front as they grabbed a 65:63 lead heading into the fourth stanza. The pressure escalated on both sides in the dying moments but Herve Lamizana was superb as he kept it cool and doomed Riyadi in the crunch time. The Ivorian tallied game-high 30 points to propel Wasl to a historic third-place finish. Ibraheem Ahmad contributed 22 points and Rashed Al-Zaabi launched 15 for the winners. Joe Vogel (211-C-73, agency: Pro Management Agency, college: Colorado St.) answered with 28 points for Riyadi. Fadi El Khatib (197-F-79, agency: Pro Management Agency) came up with 26 points in a losing case. So the 19th Edition of Asia Champions Cup was successfully completed with Wasl suffering the only loss at the tournament and registering an impressive record as for the teams that was widely taken as underdogs before the competition.
Rayyan - Wasl 81:57
Qatari Rayyan entered the Asia Champions Cup Final yesterday after beating previously undefeated Wasl in the semifinal. The Qatari outfit reached their 5th final in the last 8 editions of the competition. Wasl started the game without their charismatic leader Courtney Fields who was sidelined with a knee injury. It paid off immediately as Rayyan used the dominance in height to full advantage.
Rayyan - Wasl 81:57 Qatari Rayyan entered the Asia Champions Cup Final yesterday after beating previously undefeated Wasl in the semifinal. The Qatari outfit reached their 5th final in the last 8 editions of the competition. Wasl started the game without their charismatic leader Courtney Fields who was sidelined with a knee injury. It paid off immediately as Rayyan used the dominance in height to full advantage. Wasl managed to stay close in the starting frame due to heroics from Ayoub Albaloushi as they trailed by 2 points after 10 minutes of action. However Rayyan stepped on the gas in the second quarter and Wasl immediately started to lag behind. Qatari outfit ignited a massive 29:9 rally in the second stanza to accumulate a 22-point buffer at halftime. Herve Lamizana (208-F/C-81, college: Rutgers) was obviously out of rhythm on the night and Wasl simple ran out of options to change the complexion of the game. Rayyan notched a 23:13 third frame to pile up an insurmountable 32-point margin before the fourth term. Brian Lester introduced his bench players into action in the final period with the outcome pretty vivid. Wasl used the fact to cut the deficit a bit but it did not matter as Rayyan headed into the tournament finale. Yaseen Ismail (204-F-80) came up with 16 points to lead Rayyan. Dalron Johnson (206-F-81, college: UNLV) scored 15 points, while Saad Abdulrahman Ali (194-F-85) had 10 for the winners. Ayoub Albaloushi answered with game-high 21 points for Wasl. Herve Lamizana knocked down 13 points in a loss.
SABA Battery - Al Riyadi 70:68 The Asia Champions Cup defending champions SABA Battery left ups and downs of the preliminary round behind them and now look ready to claim the second straight title. Yesterday the Iranian outfit snatched a dramatic 70:68 win over Lebanese Riyadi to reach the championship game. Riyadi entered the game undefeated and hoped to stretch their spotless run. But SABA Battery put on a strong performance to steal a narrow win at the dying minutes. Riyadi suffered a major setback early in the encounter as their captain Ahmad Ismail (201-F-76) got injured and struggled to return to action in the latter stages. The injury was later rumored to be a season-ending one for Ahmad. Riyadi looked a bit bewildered by the absence of the key player and SABA Battery used to their advantage. The Iranian side ran away to a 42:39 lead at halftime. The spark for Lebanese team came in the third stanza as Fadi El Khatib (197-F-79, agency: Pro Management Agency) scored a couple of impressive baskets and Omar Turk provided back up as Al Riyadi spurred ahead to an 8-point distance. SABA Battery trimmed the gap to 3 points heading into the fourth period 51:54. But three back-to-back trebles from Battery put the Iranian squad back on top early in the fourth quarter. SABA Battery kept it cool throughout the fourth frame and entered the crunch time in front. They had a 3-point advantage with seconds left in regulation when Fadi El Khatib was put to charity stripe. He nailed his first attempt and then purposely missed the second one, while Ali Fakhreddine (202-C-83) pulled down a rebound for a chance to force overtime. But his attempt went off target sealing the win for SABA Battery. SABA Battery will now face Qatari Al Rayyan in the Final today.
Rayyan - Muharraq 95:78
Qatari Rayyan cruised past Muharraq of Bahrain to reach the semifinal stage yesterday. The teams had three days of rest after the quarterfinal stage was postponed because of the state mourning in Kuwait. So both sides were ready to fight and come up with their best performances. It turned to be partly true as Rayyan looked impressive down the line and posted an easy win.
Rayyan - Muharraq 95:78 Qatari Rayyan cruised past Muharraq of Bahrain to reach the semifinal stage yesterday. The teams had three days of rest after the quarterfinal stage was postponed because of the state mourning in Kuwait. So both sides were ready to fight and come up with their best performances. It turned to be partly true as Rayyan looked impressive down the line and posted an easy win. Qatari team jumped to a lead late in the first frame and drove to a 23:17 advantage after 10 minutes of action. A well-balanced offensive effort from Rayyan allowed Qatari side to stretch the gap to as many as 14 points at halftime. Rayyan did a great defensive job limiting Muharraq leader Donald Little to only 12 points and thus cutting the offensive options for Muharraq. Saad Ali stepped up for Rayyan in the second half as they kept their opponents at bay and rolled to a comfortable victory. The margin reached an 18-point mark after three quarters and Muharraq simply lacked answers for the sizzling performance from Rayyan. The defense eased the pressure in the fourth period as both teams fired from all distances but Rayyan had the game under control and registered a comfortable win at the end. Dalron Johnson (206-F-81, college: UNLV) provided 21 points to lead Rayyan. Saad Ali launched 18 points, while Yassen Musa had 14 in a winning clause. Rah-Shun Roberts (202-F-75, college: California (PA)) replied with 24 points for Muharraq. Mohammed Alderazi scored 24 points in defeat. Rayyan will face Wasl in the semifinal clash tomorrow.
Rayyan: Dalron Johnson 21, Saad Ali 18, Yassen Musa 14, Eric Chatfield 13 Muharraq: Rah-Shun Roberts 24, Mohammed Alderazi 24
Wasl - Zain 84:75 The Emirates Wasl sent a strong message to their opponents their impressive preliminary round record was not a mere coincidence. They stretched their unbeaten run to 5 games handling Zain Club in the quarterfinal yesterday. But the road to yesterdays success was a bumpy one for Wasl. They got to a slow start and Zain Club quickly stepped in front. The Jordanian outfit that many thought was just gaining the speed in the preliminary action seemed to start living up to the expectations. They looked aggressive in defense and pretty accurate on the other side of the court to accumulate a 22:17 lead after the first frame. The things did not change in the second frame as Zain Club kept on forcing their issue with Wasl finding no answers for the onslaught. Zain stretched the lead to as many as 7 points at halftime and the sensation began shaping up. But it was a different Wasl that appeared on the court after the break. Herve Lamizana (208-F/C-81, college: Rutgers) and Courtney Fields (206-F-82, college: Iona) finally shook off their first half sloppiness and Wasl gradually took over. The Emirates outfit first closed the gap and spurred in front 59:58 after three quarters of action. Zain stayed close in the opening minutes of the final period and then regained the lead 70:63 midway through the frame. But Wasl were far from being done. They posted a stunning 21:5 run to cap the game and snatched an outstanding victory at the end. Herve Lamizana and Courtney Fields scored 22 points apiece to pace Wasl. Ayoub Albaloushi provided 13 points for the winners. Boney Watson (183-G, college: Sam Houston St.) had 25 points for Zain. Zeid Abbas (203-C-83) nailed 20 points in a losing effort. Wasl will now face Al Rayyan in the semis.
SABA Battery - BK Almaty 88:77 The Asia Champions Cup resumed its action after a couple of days of mourning after the death of Emir of Kuwait. Yesterday the quarterfinal games were played and the defending champions SABA Battery claimed their semifinal spot. With the semifinal birth at stake SABA Battery turned on to the maximum speed to dominate right from the start. The Iranian outfit easily jumped to a 25:14 after the opening frame but the game was far from settled. BK Almaty kept a steady line and gradually cut the gap to 4 points at the long break. The Kazakh team stayed competitive throughout the third period as their trademark tough defense proved quite difficult for SABA to deal with. But Samad Nikkah drained a couple of three-pointers and the reigning champions enjoyed a 66:60 lead with a quarter to go. SABA stepped on the gas in the final term and looked more aggressive in the long run. Gabe Muoneke (200-F-78, college: Texas) took over the floor in the dying minutes leading SABA to an impressive victory. He finished with game-high 26 points for the victors. Samad Nikkah produced 24 points, while Hamed Hadadi scored 17 points in a winning case. Vsevolod Fadeykin (206-G-85) answered with 25 points for BK Almaty. Mikhail Yevstigneev netted 24 points in defeat. SABA Battery will take on undefeated Wasl in the semis tomorrow.
SABA Battery: Gabe Muoneke 26, Samad Nikkah 24, Hamed Hadadi 17 BK Almaty: Vsevolod Fadeykin 25, Mikhail Evstigneev 24
Qadsia - Riyadi 80:91 The hosting Qadsia had to leave the Asia Champions Cup early yesterday after they were held off by Riyadi in the quarterfinal. The hosts had somehow unconvincing performance during the preliminary round and finished their Pool just at the 4th spot. Thus they had to face the top-seeded Riyadi in the opening round of the knockout stage. Qadsia threw everything they have to keep competitive in this one. They were supported by a sell-out crowd and looked ready to challenge the Lebanese outfit from the start. The teams traded baskets at the start but the experienced Riyadi squad found the way to enjoy a 22:19 lead after the starting frame. Qadsia remained close throughout the second period with Alpha Bangura (197-F/G-80, college: St.John's) leading the charge for the hosts. Riyadi however did not allow the home team to step in front and completed the first half up by 4 points. The breakthrough for the visitors came early in the third stanza as Omar Turk and Ali Mahmoud converted some fastbreaks and Riyadi jumped to a 66:54 lead. Qadsia ran out of steam in the fourth stanza as they never threatened the advantage seriously allowing Riyadi to coast to an overall victory. Fadi El Khatib (197-F-79, agency: Pro Management Agency) provided 28 points to pace the winners. Ahmad Ismail (201-F-76) knocked down 24 points, while Omar Turk scored 17 in a win. Alpha Bangura dropped 24 points for Qadsia. Abdul Aziz Mohammad (186-F-87) added 15 points in a losing effort. So now Riyadi will take on the Cup defending champions SABA Battery in the semifinal tomorrow.
