GCC Basketball Championship: Bahrainis too hot for Qatar

Bader Malabes

Bahrain last night scored another emphatic victory in the GCC Basketball Championship in Kuwait to effortlessly move into pole position with two wins from two matches. Like on Saturday against the UAE, Bahrain were again dominant and a good overall team effort made light of mid-match wobbles against Qatar 69-62 last night. A brilliant first quarter for Bahrain, which they won with blatant ease 22-6, made all the difference in the end, as though Qatar won the second and fourth, it was too little too late. The match, paradoxically, was not a typical cliff hanger where lead changes hands frequently and culminates in a fairytale ending. Far from it, yesterday's match at Al Kuwait Club was bizarre to say the least as Bahrain were not only the first off the blocks but turned the first quarter into an unbelievably busy one-way traffic, racing to a 17-0 lead into the sixth minute. Qatar woke up from a prolonged slumber in the eight minute when Erfan Ali Saeed converted one of two three throws to narrow the lead from 17-0 to 16-0. Bahrain and Qatar scored five more points each but by then the gap was a cavernous 22-6 at the end of the first quarter. Qatar were a reformed side in the second quarter as they slowly but steadily cut the gap and with six unanswered points moved to 27-35 by half-time. They carried that impetus into the third quarter and even threatened to turn the match on its head when Abdelrahman Abdelhaleem scored a fine three-pointer to drag Qatar within a point of Bahrain - 36-37 into the sixth minute. It was at this stage that Bahrain proved that the tough gets going when the going gets tough. Ahmed Salman Haji almost single handedly regained the initiative for Bahrain with two three-pointers after Mohammed Buallay had widened the gap to 39-37. Bader Malabes (183-G-87) slipped in another three-pointer in between during this feverish scoring spree as Bahrain once again widened the gap. In the fourth quarter, Bahrain preferred to soak in the pressure after having survived a real scare. Mohammed Abdulredha Ali's three-pointer restored the 15-point lead Bahrain had built early in the match with about six minutes left. Qatar made one last attempt to pull off the impossible but by then the lead was too wide and the time left too little. Mohammed Hassan scored a three-pointer with three seconds left to bury the match and keep Bahrain on course to a semi-final slot and hopefully to the top of the summit. Mohammed Buallay carried on from where he had left off in the 71-53 victory over the UAE on Saturday and was again the most influential player scoring 12 points, same as Ahmed Salman Haji. Muzamil Hamoda (198-G-02) (11) and Bader Malabes (10) also got into double figures. For Qatar, Abdulrahman Saad (185-G/F-96) top scored with 16 points while Abdelrahman Yehia contributed 10. Bahrain's next match is against Saudi Arabia on Wednesday.
Courtesy of: gdnonline.com

Tags : BADER MALABES, BAHRAIN NATIONAL TEAM, BAHRAIN BASKETBALL