Manama rout Al Shamal

Ahmed Haji (175-PG-1994), Travin Thibodeaux (203-F-1996, college: New Orleans) and Mustafa Husain starred for Manama as the defending champions routed Qatar’s Al Shamal club 108-71 in the second Group B match for both teams of the 2023-24 West Asia Super League (WASL) – Gulf Region at the Zain Basketball Arena last night. Haji scored 24 points to go along with one rebound and three assists, Thibodeaux backed him up with 20 points, nine rebounds and five assists while the ever-consistent Mustafa Husain contributed 19 points with two rebounds and four assists. Manama were so dominant from the start that they took a 26-10 lead at the end of the first quarter and were ahead 44-30 at the break. And they swept even further ahead in the third quarter, scoring 27 points to Al Shamal’s 14, meaning that they started the fourth and final quarter leading 71-44. The Qatari club knew they needed to produce something superlative to catch up with the home side but, when the game entered its final five minutes with Manama leading 79-54, the writing was on the wall for the visitors. And, by the time the final buzzer sounded, the home side, egged on by a packed house, had added 37 points – compared to the 27 managed by their opponents – to their overall tally in the last ten minutes of the game. Having beaten Kuwait’s Kazma Club 84-76 in their opening game of the season last month, Manama now lead the four-team table with four points, ahead of Shabab Al Ahli – Dubai, who currently have two points after their 96-33 drubbing of Al Shamal in Doha last month. But the Dubai-based club could draw level with Manama if they manage to defeat Kazma tonight in Kuwait. Meanwhile, Kazma, who along with Al Shamal still have no points, will be hoping to register their first win of the season. Manama’s next game will be an away fixture against Shabab Al Ahli-Dubai in the UAE on December 18.
Courtesy of: gdnonline.com