SBL Round 17: Al Nasr defeat Al Ahly in the closest game of the week

The teams have now bigger motivation at this stage of Regular Season. Every game can be crucial and decide about teams' position at the end of Regular Season. Here is the last round review presented by Job Market.

Ninth-ranked Al Ahly (6-11) gave a tough game to second ranked Al Nasr (15-2) in Riyadh on Friday. Al Nasr managed to secure only three-point victory 93-90. However their fans expected much easier game. 24 personal fouls committed by Al Ahly helped opponents get some easy free throw opportunities. American power forward Chris Johnson (210-85, college: LSU) stepped up with a double-double by scoring 27 points and 15 rebounds for the winners and the former international guard Khalid Abdel-Gabar (188-90, college: Windsor) chipped in 24 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists. American forward Jordan Washington (203-93, college: Iona, agency: Interperformances) responded with a double-double by scoring 29 points and 15 rebounds. Al Ahly's coach Krikorian Sarkis rotated ten players in this game, but that didn't help. Al Nasr have an impressive series of six victories in a row. Defending champion maintains second place with 15-2 record behind leader Al Hilal. Al Ahly at the other side keeps the ninth position with 11 games lost. Al Nasr are looking forward to face Al Nahda (#10) in Al Khobar in the next round and are hoping to win another game. Al Ahly will play at home against Al Ansar and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Another exciting game was a derby match between two teams from Medina: Ohod (#4) and Al Ansar (#7). Al Ansar was crushed at home by 17 points 68-85 and even the advantage of their own court did not help. American guard Shane Rector (188-94, college: Utah St.) nailed a double-double by scoring 32 points and 10 rebounds for the winning side and Khalid Boukichou accounted for 18 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists. Ohod's coach Fuad Abou Chakra allowed to play the deep bench players saving starting five for next games. American-Armenian center Todd OBrien (211-89, college: UAB) came up with a double-double by scoring 20 points and 11 rebounds for Al Ansar in the defeat. Ohod maintains fourth place with 13-4 record. Al Ansar at the other side keeps the seventh position with nine games lost. They share it with Al Salam. Ohod will play against league's leader Al Hilal in Riyadh in the next round and it will be quite challenging to get another victory. Al Ansar will play on the road against Al Ahly (#9) in Jeddah and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Al Wehda (#5) was upset in Al-Awamiyah by eighth ranked Al Salam 50-46. The best player for the winners was Nick Stover who had a double-double by scoring 18 points and 10 rebounds. Wayne Chism produced a double-double by scoring 12 points and 18 rebounds for the guests. The victory was the fourth consecutive win for Al Salam. They moved-up to seventh place, which they share with Al Ansar. Loser Al Wehda keeps the fifth position with eight games lost. They share it with Al Fateh. Al Salam will meet higher ranked Al Ittihad (#3) in the next round and it will be quite challenging to get another victory. Al Wehda will play against Al Fateh and it may be a tough game between close rivals.

There were no shocking results in the rest of the games of round 17: Duba Club was destroyed by Al Hilal on the opponent's court 109-52. Winless Abha was outscored by Al Fateh in a home game 69-98. Al Nahda was rolled over Al Ittihad on the road 96-72.

Al Hilal - Duba Club 109-52

Very expected game in Riyadh where 11th ranked Duba Club (2-15) was crushed by first ranked Al Hilal (16-1) 109-52 on Friday. Al Hilal dominated down low during the game scoring 64 of its points in the paint compared to Duba Club's 38. They outrebounded Duba Club 55-33 including a 43-28 advantage in defensive rebounds. Al Hilal looked well-organized offensively handing out 27 assists comparing to just 10 passes made by Duba Club's players. The best player for the winners was American guard Antwan Scott (185-92, college: Colorado St.) who had a double-double by scoring 40 points (!!!), 20 rebounds and 9 assists. International center Mohammed Alsuwailem (211-98) chipped in a double-double by scoring 24 points and 11 rebounds. American center Jarred Shaw (208-90, college: Utah St.) produced a double-double by scoring 18 points and 13 rebounds and Swedish point guard Rami Ghanem (185-93, college: Keyano) added 17 points and 6 rebounds respectively for the guests. The winner was already known earlier in the game, so both coaches allowed to play the bench players saving starting five for next games. The victory was the fourth consecutive win for Al Hilal. They maintain first place with 16-1 record. Duba Club lost their fourth game in a row. Newly promoted team dropped to the tenth position with 15 games lost. They share it with Al Nahda. Al Hilal will meet Ohod (#4) in the next round. Duba Club will play against Abha (#12) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Al Hilal: A.Scott 40+20reb+9ast, A.Mohammed 24+11reb+2ast, N.Alabsi 15+4reb+3ast, O.Albargawi 8+8reb+6ast, H.Zakaria 8+7reb+1ast, A.Adel 7+1reb
Duba Club: J.Shaw 18+13reb+2ast, R.Ghanem 17+6reb, A.Abdulmajeed 3+1reb+2ast, A.Eyad 3+4reb, A.Abdullah 3+3reb+5ast, A.Yazeed 2+1reb+1ast

Abha - Al Fateh 69-98

Very predictable result when sixth ranked Al Fateh (9-8) smashed on the road bottom-ranked Abha (0-17) 98-69 on Friday. Al Fateh looked well-organized offensively handing out 22 assists. The best player for the winners was Algerian forward Mohamed Harat (198-90) who had a double-double by scoring 24 points and 12 rebounds. Nigerian-American guard Michael Efevberha (195-84, college: CSUN) chipped in 31 points and 7 rebounds. Al Fateh's coach felt very confident that he used 10 players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. American center Scott Sill (206-92, college: Delaware St.) produced a double-double by scoring 24 points, 13 rebounds and 6 assists and Hesham Al Shareef added 14 points and 5 rebounds respectively for the hosts. Al Fateh moved-up to fifth place, which they share with Al Wehda. Abha lost their seventeenth game in a row. Newly promoted team still closes the standings. Al Fateh will meet Al Wehda (#5) in the next round. Abha will play against Duba Club (#11) in Tabuk and hopes to get finally their first victory.
Top scorers:
Al Fateh: M.Efevberha 31+7reb, M.Harat 24+12reb+3ast, A.Khodeir Ali 9+2reb+4ast, A.Saqer Khalid 9+2reb+1ast, A.Hesham 7+2reb+5ast, H.Jassim 5+1reb+1ast
Abha: S.Sill 24+13reb+6ast, A.Shareef Hesham 14+5reb+3ast, O.Fallatah 11+2reb+3ast, A.Abdullah 9+4reb+3ast, S.Mohaned 5+1reb, A.Abdullah 4+3reb+1ast

Al Salam - Al Wehda 50-46

Al Wehda (#5) was upset in Al-Awamiyah by eighth ranked Al Salam 50-46. Al Salam held Al Wehda to an opponent 22.4 percent shooting from the field compared to 32.8 percent accuracy of the winners. The best player for the winners was American forward Nick Stover (198-93, college: USA) who had a double-double by scoring 18 points and 10 rebounds. Algerian center Touhami Ghezzoul (209-87, college: N.Dakota St.) chipped in a double-double by scoring 10 points and 18 rebounds. Stover is a former Eurobasket Summer League player, which is considered top international summer league in the market. American-Bahrain Wayne Chism (206-87, college: Tennessee) produced a double-double by scoring 12 points and 18 rebounds and the former international center Mohammed AlMarwani (206-89) added 14 points and 11 rebounds respectively for the guests. The victory was the fourth consecutive win for Al Salam. They moved-up to seventh place, which they share with Al Ansar. Loser Al Wehda keeps the fifth position with eight games lost. They share it with Al Fateh. Al Salam will meet higher ranked Al Ittihad (#3) in the next round and it will be quite challenging to get another victory. Al Wehda will play against Al Fateh and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Al Salam: N.Stover 18+10reb+1ast, T.Ghezzoul 10+18reb+1ast, S.Rashad 10+10reb+3ast, I.Mohammed 7+1ast, H.Alnamer 3+5reb+2ast, A.Bader 2+1reb
Al Wehda: M.AlMarwani 14+11reb+2ast, W.Chism 12+18reb, R.Gunday 6+3reb+3ast, B.Husam 6+4reb+1ast, M.Thamer 4+6reb+1ast, A.Mohammed 3+1reb+3ast

Al Ittihad - Al Nahda 96-72

Not a big story in a game in Jeddah where 10th ranked Al Nahda (2-15) was rolled over by third ranked Al Ittihad (14-3) 96-72 on Friday. Al Ittihad looked well-organized offensively handing out 30 assists. The best player for the winners was Nigerian-American power forward Maxie Esho (206-91, college: UMass) who had a double-double by scoring 19 points, 18 rebounds and 8 assists. Tunisian point guard Omar Abada (189-93) chipped in a double-double by scoring 19 points and 13 assists. Al Ittihad's coach Mohamed Kardani felt very confident that he used 10 players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. American center Malik Wineglass (203-93, college: Harris-Stowe St.) produced a double-double by scoring 24 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists and Turki Alsubaie added 10 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists respectively for the guests. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. The victory was the seventh consecutive win for Al Ittihad. They maintain third place with 14-3 record having just two points less than leader Al Hilal. Al Nahda lost their seventh game in a row. They keep the tenth position with 15 games lost. They share it with Duba Club. Al Ittihad will meet at home Al Salam (#8) in the next round which should be theoretically another easy game. Al Nahda will play against the league's second-placed Al Nasr and hope to secure a win.
Top scorers:
Al Ittihad: A.Yasir 23+2reb+2ast, M.Almarwani 21+10reb+3ast, M.Esho 19+18reb+8ast, O.Abada 19+4reb+13ast, A.Raad 5, A.AlMadani 3+2reb+1ast
Al Nahda: M.Wineglass 24+10reb+6ast, K.Abdulrahman 13+4reb+1ast, B.Abdulmajeed 12+8reb+5ast, A.Turki 10+9reb+7ast, K.Marwan 6+6reb, A.Ishaq 4+2reb+1ast

Al Ansar - Ohod 68-85

Another exciting game was a derby match between two teams from Medina: Ohod (#4) and Al Ansar (#7). Al Ansar was crushed at home by 17 points 68-85 and even the advantage of their own court did not help. American guard Shane Rector (188-94, college: Utah St.) nailed a double-double by scoring 32 points and 10 rebounds for the winning side and Moroccan-Belgian center Khalid Boukichou (208-92) accounted for 18 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists. Ohod's coach Fuad Abou Chakra allowed to play the deep bench players saving starting five for next games. American-Armenian center Todd OBrien (211-89, college: UAB) came up with a double-double by scoring 20 points and 11 rebounds and Jordanian guard Sami Bzai (190-94, college: SE Oklahoma) added 17 points and 6 rebounds respectively for Al Ansar in the defeat. Ohod maintains fourth place with 13-4 record. Al Ansar at the other side keeps the seventh position with nine games lost. They share it with Al Salam. Ohod will play against league's leader Al Hilal in Riyadh in the next round and it will be quite challenging to get another victory. Al Ansar will play on the road against Al Ahly (#9) in Jeddah and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Ohod: S.Rector 32+10reb+3ast, K.Boukichou 18+9reb+4ast, A.Almukhtar 11+3reb+2ast, A.Mohammed 8, N.Abojalas 7+5reb+2ast, F.Belal 6+5reb+4ast
Al Ansar: T.O'Brien 20+11reb+2ast, S.Bzai 17+6reb+3ast, B.Ayman 14+6reb+1ast, A.Salman 8+6reb+3ast, Y.Fallatah 5+3reb+1ast, H.Hammam 2+2reb

Al Nasr - Al Ahly 93-90

Ninth-ranked Al Ahly (6-11) gave a tough game to second ranked Al Nasr (15-2) in Riyadh on Friday. Al Nasr managed to secure only three-point victory 93-90. However their fans expected much easier game. 24 personal fouls committed by Al Ahly helped opponents get some easy free throw opportunities. American power forward Chris Johnson (210-85, college: LSU) stepped up with a double-double by scoring 27 points and 15 rebounds for the winners and the former international guard Khalid Abdel-Gabar (188-90, college: Windsor) chipped in 24 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists. American forward Jordan Washington (203-93, college: Iona, agency: Interperformances) responded with a double-double by scoring 29 points and 15 rebounds and Canadian-Jordanian guard Freddy Ibrahim (190-96, college: Tampa) scored 20 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists and 4 steals. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Al Ahly's coach Krikorian Sarkis rotated ten players in this game, but that didn't help. Al Nasr have an impressive series of six victories in a row. Defending champion maintains second place with 15-2 record behind leader Al Hilal. Al Ahly at the other side keeps the ninth position with 11 games lost. Al Nasr are looking forward to face Al Nahda (#10) in Al Khobar in the next round and are hoping to win another game. Al Ahly will play at home against Al Ansar and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Al Nasr: C.Johnson 27+15reb+2ast, K.Abdel-Gabar 24+5reb+7ast, K.Musab 16+8reb+1ast, A.Ayoub 12+7reb+2ast, J.Al Kabe 9+2reb+1ast, T.Almuhanna 5+2reb+1ast
Al Ahly: J.Washington 29+15reb+2ast, F.Ibrahim 20+6reb+7ast, A.Shubayli 17+10reb+2ast, B.Ayob 15+2reb+1ast, A.Abdulrahman 6+2reb+4ast, M.Safwan 3+2reb



Tags : CHRIS JOHNSON, AL NASR RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIAN BASKETBALL