QBL Round 2 of Regular Season

There were only 2 rounds played so far and it's still very beginning of the Regular Season in QBL. Here is the last round review presented by Job Market.

First defeat of league's leader Al Ahli against Al Rayyan 91-71 was the most important game of the last round. Al Rayyan had a 37-26 advantage in offensive rebounds. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 23 assists. American guard Malik Curry (185-1999, college: WVU) orchestrated the victory with a double-double by scoring 16 points, 12 rebounds and 8 assists. contributed with 22 points and 5 assists for the winners. Al Rayyan's coach Stathis Nerantzakis used a ten-player rotation which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. replied with a double-double by scoring 11 points and 16 rebounds for Al Ahli. Al Ahli will play next round against Al Wakrah trying to make it back to the top of the standings. Al Rayyan will try to continue on its current victory against Al Shamal. It will be extra interesting game as Al Shamal is their local rival from Doha.
Al Sadd recorded a loss in Doha. Visitors were rolled over by Al Arabi 103-84. Bahrain point guard Mustafa Ali (177-2002, agency: Allstars Agency) scored 30 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists (was perfect 9-for-9 from the free throw line !!!) to lead the charge for the winners and Elmedin Kikanovic chipped in 22 points and 11 rebounds during the contest. American guard Steven Green (196-1993, college: OKBU) responded with 20 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists. Al Arabi will play against Al Khor on the road in the next round. Al Sadd's supporters look forward to an exciting derby game next round, where their team will face at home their local rival from Doha Qatar Club.
Another interesting game was a derby match between two local teams from Doha: Al Shamal and Al Gharafa. Al Gharafa was defeated at home 116-124 and even the fact of playing on their own court did not help. Shane Rector notched 45 points (!!!) and 7 assists to lead the effort. Even 18 points, 7 rebounds and 9 assists by Kelechi Ajukwa did not help to save the game for Al Gharafa. Al Shamal's supporters look forward to another derby game next round, where their team will travel locally in Doha to the arena Al Rayyan.

In the last game of round 2 Al Wakrah beat Qatar Club on the road 80-75.



Qatar Club - Al Wakrah 75-80

But Qatar Club was not able to use a home court advantage and was defeated by the opponent from Al Wakrah 80-75 on Thursday night. Al Wakrah made 16-of-18 free shots (88.9 percent) during the game. American guard Aaron Mitchell (188-1989, college: Longwood) notched a double-double by scoring 20 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists to lead the effort and American-Haitian forward Wes Alcegaire (198-1994, college: BGSU) supported him with 26 points and 8 rebounds. Even a double-double of 23 points and 14 rebounds by Bahrain point guard Mustafa Ali (177-2002, agency: Allstars Agency) did not help to save the game for Qatar Club. Canadian center Christian Rohlehr (209-1997, college: SFC) added 15 points and 12 rebounds for the hosts. Four Qatar Club players scored in double figures. Al Wakrah will meet at home Al Ahli in the next round. Qatar Club's supporters look forward to an exciting derby game next round, where their team will travel locally in Doha to the arena Al Sadd.
Top scorers:
Qatar Club: J.Dejan 23+14reb+1ast, A.Mitrovic 18+5reb+1ast, J.Nicholas 15+5reb+2ast, C.Rohlehr 15+12reb+1ast, S.Asem 4+2reb+1ast, A.Sandro 0
Al Wakrah: W.Alcegaire 26+8reb+1ast, A.Mitchell 20+10reb+6ast, B.Camara 16+3reb+2ast, S.Ndour Mame 9+5reb, J.Mubarak 7+9reb+1ast, T.Momar 2+1reb+3ast

Al Arabi - Al Sadd 103-84

Al Sadd recorded a loss in Doha. Visitors were rolled over by Al Arabi 103-84. Al Arabi made 17-of-21 charity shots (81.0 percent) during the game. Bahrain point guard Mustafa Ali (177-2002, agency: Allstars Agency) scored 30 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists (was perfect 9-for-9 from the free throw line !!!) to lead the charge for the winners and chipped in 22 points and 11 rebounds during the contest. American guard Steven Green (196-1993, college: OKBU) responded with 20 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists and Sudanese-Australian forward Deng Adel (201-1997, college: Louisville) scored 23 points and 7 rebounds. Five Al Arabi and four Al Sadd players scored in double figures. Al Arabi will play against Al Khor on the road in the next round. Al Sadd's supporters look forward to an exciting derby game next round, where their team will face at home their local rival from Doha Qatar Club.
Top scorers:
Al Sadd: D.Adel 23+7reb+3ast, S.Green 20+8reb+8ast, A.Faisal 14+4reb+1ast, S.Omar 10+1reb+1ast, S.Ndoye 7+8reb+1ast, B.Christos 5
Al Arabi: M.Ali 30+7reb+6ast, K.Elmedin 22+11reb+1ast, A.Khalid 17+5reb+4ast, S.Diallo 15+1reb+3ast, A.Saad 11+3reb+2ast, A.Yahya 6+6reb+2ast

Al Gharafa - Al Shamal 116-124

Another interesting game was a derby match between two local teams from Doha: Al Shamal and Al Gharafa. Al Gharafa was defeated at home 116-124 and even the fact of playing on their own court did not help. Al Shamal made 19-of-23 free shots (82.6 percent) during the game. They also forced 20 Al Gharafa turnovers. Al Shamal looked well-organized offensively handing out 21 assists. American guard Shane Rector (188-1994, college: Utah St.) notched 45 points (!!!) and 7 assists to lead the effort and the other American import guard Tyree Crump (185-1997, college: Georgia, agency: BIG) supported him with 33 points (!!!), 5 rebounds, 6 assists and 4 steals. Even 18 points, 7 rebounds and 9 assists by Nigerian-American guard Kelechi Ajukwa (201-1995, college: Charlotte, agency: The Crew A.M.) did not help to save the game for Al Gharafa. American-Haitian forward Wes Alcegaire (198-1994, college: BGSU) added 22 points and 5 assists for the hosts. Four Al Shamal and five Al Gharafa players scored in double figures. Al Shamal's supporters look forward to another derby game next round, where their team will travel locally in Doha to the arena Al Rayyan.
Top scorers:
Al Gharafa: R.Williams 26+4reb, A.Raslan 22+4reb+5ast, K.Ajukwa 18+7reb+9ast, J.Hall 18+5reb+1ast, M.Nedim 18+7reb, M.Mohd 10+15reb+1ast
Al Shamal: S.Rector 45+4reb+7ast, T.Crump 33+5reb+6ast, F.Avdic 15+9reb+3ast, T.Baxter Jr. 14+10reb+1ast, H.Ghassan 7+2reb+2ast, N.Alioune 6+1reb

Al Rayyan - Al Ahli D. 91-71

First defeat of league's leader Al Ahli against Al Rayyan 91-71 was the most important game of the last round. Al Rayyan had a 37-26 advantage in offensive rebounds. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 23 assists. American guard Malik Curry (185-1999, college: WVU) orchestrated the victory with a double-double by scoring 16 points, 12 rebounds and 8 assists. contributed with 22 points and 5 assists for the winners. Four Al Rayyan players scored in double figures. Al Rayyan's coach Stathis Nerantzakis used a ten-player rotation which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. replied with a double-double by scoring 11 points and 16 rebounds and American guard Nigel Johnson (187-1995, college: Virginia) added 19 points and 4 assists in the effort for Al Ahli. Al Ahli will play next round against Al Wakrah trying to make it back to the top of the standings. Al Rayyan will try to continue on its current victory against Al Shamal. It will be extra interesting game as Al Shamal is their local rival from Doha.
Top scorers:
Al Ahli D.: N.Johnson 19+4ast, D.Mahmoud 13+7reb, A.Mohammed 11+16reb+2ast, Y.Youssef 9+2reb+5ast, T.Adway 9+8reb, N.Moustapha 7+4reb+3ast
Al Rayyan: M.Abdulla 22+1reb+5ast, B.Dieng 20+5reb+1ast, M.Curry 16+12reb+8ast, T.Harris 12+8reb+6ast, R.Freimanis 9+8reb+1ast, M.Haracic 5+3reb+1ast