Nizwa retains title

Nizwa Club's domination in domestic basketball was complete on Tuesday night when it defeated Ahli-Sidab in the final of the seventh edition of the Ministry's Shield Basketball Championship at the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex (SQSC) on Tuesday night. The Nizwa hoopsters, who had won the Oman Basketball Association (OBA) league title last month, won the final 78-65 to end the season on a high. It was the third consecutive Ministry's Shield crown for Nizwa that has won five out of the seven editions held. Besides the finalists, the other four teams in the competition were Seeb, Al Ittefaq, Dhofar and Quriyat. H E Sheikh Khalid bin Omar al Marhoon, the Minister of Civil Service, was the chief guest and gave away the awards in the presence of Fareed al Zadjali, the OBA chairman. Last month, Nizwa clinched the OBA league title for the 13th time. No club in Oman's basketball history has won so many titles; Ahli-Sidab is next on the list with seven trophies. Speaking to Muscat Daily, a day after the win on Wednesday, Mohammed al Qusaimi, the team's coach, said, 'We are happy to have achieved a double. In fact, it is a hat-trick of Ministry's Shield titles and proves in no uncertain terms that we are the best basketball club in Oman.' Nizwa has been dominating the domestic league since it won the first title in 2003. It has either finished as the champion or runner-up in the league since 2003. Besides Qusaimi, the team's coaching staff also includes a Serbian trainer in Igor Kovacevic. The club's chairman, Abdullah al Hadhrami, was present during the final and congratulated the players and the coaches for the win. The next challenge for the club will be the Arab championships in Morocco, which will be held in October.
Courtesy of: muscatdaily.com