SBL Round 21: Al Hilal edges Al Nassr by two points

There will be only one (last) round of the Regular Season in SBL. Here is the last round review presented by Job Market.

The most exciting game of round 21 in the SBL took place in Riyadh. This derby game ended with only two-point defeat on the road of second-best Al Nassr (18-3) to fifth ranked Al Hilal (13-8) 86-84 on Sunday evening. It ended at the same time the ten-game winning streak of Al Nassr. Al Hilal looked well-organized offensively handing out 22 assists. The best player for the winners was the former international center Mohammed Alsuwailem (211-1998) who had a double-double by scoring 23 points, 18 rebounds and 5 assists (on 9-of-11 shooting from the field). The former international guard Osama Albargawi (188-1998) chipped in 17 points, 11 rebounds and 5 assists. At the other side the best for losing team was American forward Antonio Campbell (206-1994, college: Ohio) who recorded 19 points and 9 rebounds. Defending champion maintains fifth place with 13-8 record. Al Nassr at the other side keeps the second position with three games lost. Al Hilal are looking forward to face higher ranked Ohod (#4) in Medina in the next round and it will be quite challenging to get another victory. Al Nassr will play at home against Al Fateh and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Eighth-ranked Al Salam (7-14) made lots of trouble for fourth ranked Ohod (16-5) in Al-Awamiyah. The visitors from Medina managed to secure only one-point victory 80-79. However their fans expected much easier game. The game was dominated by American players. It was a good game for point guard James Justice (178-1989, college: UT Southern) who saved his team from a defeat with 28 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists. Navar Elmore contributed with 15 points and 10 rebounds for the winners. Center Anthony McClain (211-1988, college: Cincinnati) answered with a double-double by scoring 35 points (!!!) and 18 rebounds for Al Salam. Ohod moved-up to third place, which they share with Al Fateh. Al Salam at the other side keeps the eighth position with 14 games lost. Ohod will play against Al Hilal (#5) in Riyadh in the next round. Al Salam will play against Al Adalah and hopes to get back on the winning track.
Leader Al Ahli delivered the nineteenth victory on Thursday night. This time they beat 10th ranked Al Adalah (3-18) 101-97 in Jeddah. Devin Ebanks stepped up with a double-double by scoring 29 points, 13 rebounds and 7 assists for the winners. Al Ahli's coach Ali Alsanhani used an eleven-player rotation in such tough game. The best for the losing side was Islem Elajmi with 27 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists. Al Ahli have a solid series of three victories in a row. They maintain first place with 19-2 record. Al Adalah lost twelfth consecutive game. Newly promoted team dropped to the eleventh position with 18 games lost. They share it with Al Taawoun. Al Ahli will meet Al Ansar (#10) in the next round and are hoping to win another game. Al Adalah will play against Al Salam and hope to secure a win.

Other games of round 21 were quite predictable and ended without any surprises. Here they are:
bottom-ranked Al Taawoun was defeated by Ittihad in Jeddah 93-91. Al Fateh beat Deba at home 86-81. Al Ansar won against Al Wehda on the opponent's court 92-84.

Ittihad - Al Taawoun 93-91

There was no surprise in Jeddah where 12th ranked Al Taawoun (3-18) was edged by seventh ranked Ittihad (10-11) 93-91 on Thursday. However just two-point win is not that big difference and the fans of host team counted on more convincing victory. Ittihad outrebounded Al Taawoun 47-31 including 34 on the defensive glass. Tunisian point guard Omar Abada (189-1993) stepped up and scored 30 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists for the winners and American power forward Charles Rhodes (203-1985, college: MSU) chipped in 28 points, 13 rebounds and 4 blocks (on 12-of-14 shooting from the field). The best for the losing side was Serbian power forward Aleksandar Marelja (207-1992) with a double-double by scoring 25 points, 13 rebounds and 7 assists and American guard Darious Clark (193-1990, college: Slippery Rock, agency: Domantay Sports) scored 24 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists. Four Ittihad and five Al Taawoun players scored in double figures. Ittihad maintains seventh place with 10-11 record. Al Taawoun lost fifth consecutive game. Newly promoted team stay at the bottom position with 18 games lost. They share it with Al Adalah. Ittihad will meet Deba (#9) in the next round. Al Taawoun will play against Al Wehda and hope to secure a win.
Top scorers:
Al Taawoun: A.Marelja 25+13reb+7ast, D.Clark 24+5reb+5ast, S.Almutairi 15+4reb, A.Mustafa 13+6reb+4ast, A.Ahmad 12+2reb+5ast, A.Abdullah 2+1reb+3ast
Ittihad: O.Abada 30+7reb+7ast, C.Rhodes 28+13reb+1ast, M.Almarwani 19+11reb+6ast, A.AlMadani 10+1ast, A.Abdullah 4+3reb, A.Musallam 2+3reb+1ast

Al Ahli - Al Adalah 101-97

Leader Al Ahli delivered the nineteenth victory on Thursday night. This time they beat 10th ranked Al Adalah (3-18) 101-97 in Jeddah. Al Ahli dominated down low during the game scoring 62 of its points in the paint compared to Al Adalah's 36. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 23 assists. American forward Devin Ebanks (206-1989, college: WVU) stepped up with a double-double by scoring 29 points, 13 rebounds and 7 assists for the winners and the former international point guard Marzouq Almuwallad (180-1992) chipped in 21 points, 6 rebounds and 7 assists. Al Ahli's coach Ali Alsanhani used an eleven-player rotation in such tough game. The best for the losing side was Tunisian swingman Islem Elajmi (196-1991) with 27 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists and the former international guard Faisal Aldawsari (180-1990) scored 28 points. Five Al Ahli and four Al Adalah players scored in double figures. Al Ahli have a solid series of three victories in a row. They maintain first place with 19-2 record. Al Adalah lost twelfth consecutive game. Newly promoted team dropped to the eleventh position with 18 games lost. They share it with Al Taawoun. Al Ahli will meet Al Ansar (#10) in the next round and are hoping to win another game. Al Adalah will play against Al Salam and hope to secure a win.
Top scorers:
Al Adalah: F.Aldawsari 28+4reb+2ast, I.Elajmi 27+7reb+4ast, A.Semenov 17+13reb+3ast, A.Saqer Khalid 13+4reb+6ast, S.Mahmoud 9+2reb+3ast, S.Mohanned 3+2ast
Al Ahli: D.Ebanks 29+13reb+7ast, M.Almuwallad 21+6reb+7ast, B.Ayman 17+2reb+1ast, A.Shubayli 14+6reb+2ast, D.Liggins 10+9reb+6ast, M.Abdulrahman 8+2reb

Al Fateh - Deba 86-81

No shocking result in a game in Al Hasa where third ranked Al Fateh (16-5) defeated 9th ranked Deba (5-16) 86-81 on Friday. However just five-point win is not that big difference and the fans of host team counted on more convincing victory. Al Fateh looked well-organized offensively handing out 26 assists comparing to just 11 passes made by Deba's players. Algerian forward Mohamed Harat (198-1990) stepped up with a double-double by scoring 27 points, 16 rebounds and 7 assists for the winners and forward Mohammed Alsaqer chipped in 7 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists. The best for the losing side was American guard Unique McLean (188, college: SFC, agency: Blacktop Management) with 26 points and 7 rebounds and Suhail Ibrahim scored 22 points and 9 rebounds. Both coaches used bench players in such tough game. Al Fateh have an impressive series of five victories in a row. They maintain third place with 16-5 record having just three points less than leader Al Ahli, which they share with Ohod. Deba lost sixth consecutive game. They keep the ninth position with 16 games lost. Al Fateh will meet league's second-placed Al Nassr in the next round and it will be for sure the game of the week. Deba will play against Ittihad (#7) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Deba: U.McLean 26+7reb+1ast, I.Suhail 22+9reb, J.Guity 16+13reb+1ast, A.Abdullah 7+3reb+5ast, A.Osama 6+2reb, H.Jassim 3+1ast
Al Fateh: M.Harat 27+16reb+7ast, A.Altamar 17+2reb, F.Jones 12+2reb+3ast, A.Mohammed 7+10reb+8ast, A.Abdullah 6+1reb+1ast, A.Saad 6+1reb

Al Salam - Ohod 79-80

Eighth-ranked Al Salam (7-14) made lots of trouble for fourth ranked Ohod (16-5) in Al-Awamiyah. The visitors from Medina managed to secure only one-point victory 80-79. However their fans expected much easier game. Strangely Al Salam outrebounded Ohod 49-31 including 34 on the defensive glass. The game was dominated by American players. It was a good game for point guard James Justice (178-1989, college: UT Southern) who saved his team from a defeat with 28 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists. Forward Navar Elmore (206, college: Livingstone) contributed with a double-double by scoring 15 points and 10 rebounds for the winners. Center Anthony McClain (211-1988, college: Cincinnati) answered with a double-double by scoring 35 points (!!!) and 18 rebounds and forward Nick Stover (198-1993, college: USA) added 14 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists in the effort for Al Salam. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Ohod moved-up to third place, which they share with Al Fateh. Al Salam at the other side keeps the eighth position with 14 games lost. Ohod will play against Al Hilal (#5) in Riyadh in the next round. Al Salam will play against Al Adalah and hopes to get back on the winning track.
Top scorers:
Al Salam: A.McClain 35+18reb+1ast, N.Stover 14+10reb+6ast, A.Abdulaziz 13+7reb+5ast, A.Hadi 11+3reb+2ast, S.Rashad 4+9reb+3ast, A.Nimer Hussain 2+1reb+3ast
Ohod: J.Justice 28+5reb+5ast, N.Elmore 15+10reb+2ast, S.Mohammad 14+1reb+1ast, F.Belal 12+5reb+1ast, Y.Fallatah 6+6reb+3ast, A.Ahmed 3+4reb+1ast

Al Wehda - Al Ansar 84-92

There was an upset in Mecca where higher ranked Al Wehda (12-9) was defeated by tenth ranked Al Ansar (4-17) 92-84 on Friday. Al Ansar forced 19 Al Wehda turnovers. Strangely Al Wehda outrebounded Al Ansar 43-30 including 28 on the defensive glass. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 24 assists. American center Raymond Miller (204-1988, college: CS Fullerton) stepped up with a double-double by scoring 31 points and 15 rebounds for the winners and guard Salman Almoulad chipped in 24 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists. The best for the losing side was American forward Dewayne Jackson (203-1990, college: Morgan St.) with 21 points, 9 rebounds and 9 assists and the former international center Mohammed AlMarwani (206-1989) produced a double-double by scoring 20 points, 12 rebounds and 5 assists. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Al Ansar have a solid series of three victories in a row. They maintain tenth place with 4-17 record. Loser Al Wehda dropped to the sixth position with nine games lost. Al Ansar will meet at home league's leader Al Ahli in the next round and it will be quite challenging to get another victory. Al Wehda will play against Al Taawoun (#12) and hope to secure a win.
Top scorers:
Al Wehda: F.Abdulrahman 26+9reb+1ast, D.Jackson 21+9reb+9ast, M.AlMarwani 20+12reb+5ast, M.Thamer 10+5reb+1ast, Q.Alaa 4+1reb+2ast, B.Husam 3+7reb+5ast
Al Ansar: R.Miller 31+15reb+3ast, A.Salman 24+5reb+7ast, C.Johnson 19+5reb+7ast, A.Ahmed 11+1ast, S.Khaled 7+4reb+5ast, A.Mohannad 0

Al Hilal - Al Nassr 86-84

The most exciting game of round 21 in the SBL took place in Riyadh. This derby game ended with only two-point defeat on the road of second-best Al Nassr (18-3) to fifth ranked Al Hilal (13-8) 86-84 on Sunday evening. It ended at the same time the ten-game winning streak of Al Nassr. Al Hilal looked well-organized offensively handing out 22 assists. The best player for the winners was the former international center Mohammed Alsuwailem (211-1998) who had a double-double by scoring 23 points, 18 rebounds and 5 assists (on 9-of-11 shooting from the field). The former international guard Osama Albargawi (188-1998) chipped in a double-double by scoring 17 points, 11 rebounds and 5 assists. At the other side the best for losing team was American forward Antonio Campbell (206-1994, college: Ohio) who recorded 19 points and 9 rebounds and the other American import swingman Brandon Austin (198-1994, college: NW Florida St.) added 18 points and 7 rebounds respectively. Both teams had five players each who scored in double figures. Defending champion maintains fifth place with 13-8 record. Al Nassr at the other side keeps the second position with three games lost. Al Hilal are looking forward to face higher ranked Ohod (#4) in Medina in the next round and it will be quite challenging to get another victory. Al Nassr will play at home against Al Fateh and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Al Nassr: K.Musab 19+5reb+3ast, A.Campbell 19+9reb+1ast, B.Austin 18+7reb+3ast, T.Almuhanna 15+5reb+3ast, A.Jallas Nasser 10+10reb+1ast, A.Salem 3
Al Hilal: A.Mohammed 23+18reb+5ast, C.Chapman 18+4reb+2ast, O.Albargawi 17+11reb+5ast, K.Abdel-Gabar 13+2reb+8ast, N.Alabsi 13+1ast, H.Zakaria 2



Tags : MOHAMMED ALSUWAILEM, AL HILAL RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIAN BASKETBALL