Superleague Round 19 (Regular Season): No surprise as #1 Al-Difaa defeat Zakho

Here is the last round review presented by Job Market.

Superleague top team - Al-Difaa (14-2) managed to deliver another win on Sunday. This time they beat seventh ranked Zakho (7-7) 97-83. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of Zakho. Al-Difaa dominated down low during the game scoring 48 of its points in the paint compared to Zakho's 18 and made 16-of-19 free shots (84.2 percent) during the game. Al-Difaa had a 36-22 advantage in offensive rebounds. It was a great evening for American point guard Darius Johnson-Odom (187-1989, college: Marquette) who led his team to a victory scoring 26 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists. International power forward Ihab Al-Zuhairi (210-1998) helped adding 16 points and 14 rebounds. At the losing side American forward Isaac Banks (201-1994, college: ETSU) responded with 19 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists. Al-Difaa have a solid series of four victories in a row. Defending champion maintains first place with 14-2 record. Zakho at the other side keeps the seventh position with seven games lost.

In the last two games of round 19 Ghaz Al-Shamal lost to Dijlah on the opponent's court 74-81. Tijarah unfortunately lost to Al Shurtah in a home game 91-99.
The most impressive stats of the last round was 37 points (!!!) and 7 rebounds by Reggie Baker of Tijarah.



Zakho - Al-Difaa 83-97

Superleague top team - Al-Difaa (14-2) managed to deliver another win on Sunday. This time they beat seventh ranked Zakho (7-7) 97-83. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of Zakho. Al-Difaa dominated down low during the game scoring 48 of its points in the paint compared to Zakho's 18 and made 16-of-19 free shots (84.2 percent) during the game. Al-Difaa had a 36-22 advantage in offensive rebounds. It was a great evening for American point guard Darius Johnson-Odom (187-1989, college: Marquette) who led his team to a victory scoring 26 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists. International power forward Ihab Al-Zuhairi (210-1998) helped adding 16 points and 14 rebounds. At the losing side American forward Isaac Banks (201-1994, college: ETSU) responded with 19 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists and the other American import guard Marcus Burwell (190-1997, college: Catawba) scored 23 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Al-Difaa have a solid series of four victories in a row. Defending champion maintains first place with 14-2 record. Zakho at the other side keeps the seventh position with seven games lost.
Top scorers:
Zakho: M.Burwell 23+6reb+4ast, I.Banks 19+9reb+6ast, M.Murad 18+5reb+2ast, Z.Alyousif 13+6reb+4ast, M.Zewki 5+8reb+3ast, M.Hussein 3
Al-Difaa: D.Johnson-Odom 26+6reb+6ast, T.Hammoodi 24+5reb+2ast, A.Alqarnawi 16+5reb, I.Al-Zuhairi 16+14reb+3ast, U.McLean 10+2ast, A.Ismael 3+3reb+1ast

Dijlah - Ghaz Al-Shamal 81-74

Very expected game in Baghdad where 8th ranked Ghaz Al-Shamal (5-7) was defeated by second ranked Dijlah (14-3) 81-74 on Monday. It was a great evening for American forward Gerard Tarin (206-1996, college: Nova SE) who led his team to a victory scoring 20 points and 8 rebounds. International swingman Karrar Hamzah (187-1995) helped adding 11 points, 8 rebounds and 9 assists. Tarin is a former Eurobasket Summer League player, which is considered top international summer league in the market. At the losing side American swingman Ricardo Artis II (198-1993, college: Wiley) responded with 16 points and 9 rebounds and Adil Albasrawi produced a double-double by scoring 14 points and 11 rebounds. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Dijlah have a solid series of four victories in a row. They maintain second place with 14-3 record having just one point less than leader Al-Difaa. Ghaz Al-Shamal lost third consecutive game. They keep the eighth position with seven games lost.
Top scorers:
Ghaz Al-Shamal: M.Nasradin 18+3reb+1ast, K.Hunter 18+4reb+3ast, R.Artis II 16+9reb+2ast, A.Albasrawi 14+11reb+1ast, M.Abdulqader 6+3reb+9ast, M.Al-Sumedaei 2
Dijlah: G.Tarin 20+8reb+2ast, S.Gibson 18+3reb+1ast, D.Liggins 15+3reb+1ast, K.Hamzah 11+8reb+9ast, A.Alibrahimi 8+9reb, J.Al-saadi 6+5reb

Tijarah - Al Shurtah 91-99

Very predictable result when third ranked Al Shurtah (11-6) defeated on the road 10th ranked Tijarah (2-13) 99-91 on Monday. Al Shurtah had a 41-29 advantage in offensive rebounds. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 29 assists comparing to just 13 passes made by Tijarah's players. It was a great evening for American forward Antwaine Wiggins (203-1988, college: Charleston) who led his team to a victory with a double-double by scoring 19 points, 12 rebounds and 5 assists. Rekan Abdulla helped adding 27 points and 6 rebounds (on 11-of-14 shooting from the field). Al Shurtah's coach used a ten-player rotation which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. At the losing side American Reggie Baker (193-1993, college: BCU) responded with 37 points (!!!) and 7 rebounds and the other American import forward Julio Guity (204-1995, college: Montevallo, agency: The French Family Consulting) produced a double-double by scoring 18 points and 11 rebounds. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Al Shurtah maintains third place with 11-6 record having just two points less than leader Al-Difaa. Loser Tijarah keeps the tenth position with 13 games lost.
Top scorers:
Tijarah: R.Baker 37+7reb+3ast, J.Guity 18+11reb+2ast, A.Al-Saedi 13+11reb+2ast, A.Al-Abboodi 10+1reb+1ast, S.Al-Saedi 6+1reb, A.Al-Ghazali 3+2reb+1ast
Al Shurtah: R.Abdulla 27+6reb+2ast, A.Wiggins 19+12reb+5ast, N.Altaleb 17+8reb+4ast, J.Justice 14+10reb+10ast, A.Al-Jashaami 9+5reb+1ast, D.Al-Hchaimi 5+2ast