SBL Round 8 (Regular Season): Ohod hand first defeat to Ittihad

Here is the last round review presented by Job Market.

Ittihad (7-1) recorded its first loss in Medina on Friday night. Visitors were edged by seventh ranked Ohod (4-4) 91-89. It ended at the same time the seven-game winning streak of Ittihad. The best player for the winners was South Sudanese-Australian forward Deng Deng (203-1992, college: Baylor) who had a double-double by scoring 23 points and 16 rebounds. The former international point guard Fahad Belal (181-1991) chipped in 18 points and 6 assists. American power forward Latavious Williams (203-1989) produced a double-double by scoring 29 points and 14 rebounds for the guests. Ohod have a solid four-game winning streak. They moved-up to sixth place. Ittihad at the other side keeps the third position with one game lost. Ohod are looking forward to face Al Safa (#9) in Safwa in the next round. Ittihad will play at home against the league's leader Al Hilal (#1) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Bottom-ranked Al Taawoun (0-8) tried to put together a comeback for its first victory of the season, but they fell short in the 88-61 loss to ninth ranked Al Safa (3-5) in Safwa. American guard Dallas Morgan (185, college: CMU) orchestrated the victory with a triple-double by scoring 24 points, 10 rebounds, 11 assists and 7 steals. Dikembe Dixson contributed with 26 points and 8 rebounds for the winners. American power forward Devin Gilmore (200-1997, college: Murray St.) replied with a double-double by scoring 24 points and 22 rebounds for Al Taawoun. Al Safa moved-up to seventh place, which they share with Al Khaleej and Al Fateh. Al Taawoun at the other side still closes the standings with eight games lost. They share the position with Deba. Al Safa will play against higher ranked Ohod (#6) in Medina in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Al Taawoun will play at home against Al Salam (#10) and hopes to get finally their first victory.
Bottom-ranked Deba (0-8) tried to put together a comeback for its first victory of the season, but they fell short in the 81-29 loss to ninth ranked Al Khaleej (3-5) in on Friday evening. Worth to mention a great performance of Nobel Boungou-Colo who helped to win the game recording 12 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists. Al Khaleej's coach felt very confident that he used entire bench which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. Suhail Ibrahim responded with a double-double by scoring 19 points and 10 rebounds. Al Khaleej moved-up to seventh place, which they share with Al Fateh and Al Safa. Loser Deba still closes the standings with eight games lost. They share the position with Al Taawoun. Al Khaleej will meet at home higher ranked Al Wehda (#5) in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Deba will play against Al Fateh (#7) and looks forward to get finally their first victory.

Rest of the games of round 8 were very predictable and ended without any surprises. Here they are:
Al Nassr defeated Al Salam in Riyadh 85-68. Al Wehda smashed Al Ahli at home 81-61. Al Hilal won against Al Fateh on the opponent's court 108-101.



Al Safa - Al Taawoun 88-61

Bottom-ranked Al Taawoun (0-8) tried to put together a comeback for its first victory of the season, but they fell short in the 88-61 loss to ninth ranked Al Safa (3-5) in Safwa. They also forced 28 Al Taawoun turnovers. Strangely Al Taawoun outrebounded Al Safa 55-32 including a 25-14 advantage in offensive rebounds. American guard Dallas Morgan (185, college: CMU) orchestrated the victory with a triple-double by scoring 24 points, 10 rebounds, 11 assists and 7 steals. The other American import forward Dikembe Dixson (201-1996, college: UIC) contributed with 26 points and 8 rebounds for the winners. Four Al Safa players scored in double figures. American power forward Devin Gilmore (200-1997, college: Murray St.) replied with a double-double by scoring 24 points and 22 rebounds and Bosnian center Markus Loncar (213-1996) added 16 points, 19 rebounds and 4 blocks in the effort for Al Taawoun. Al Safa moved-up to seventh place, which they share with Al Khaleej and Al Fateh. Al Taawoun at the other side still closes the standings with eight games lost. They share the position with Deba. Al Safa will play against higher ranked Ohod (#6) in Medina in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Al Taawoun will play at home against Al Salam (#10) and hopes to get finally their first victory.
Top scorers:
Al Safa: D.Dixson 26+8reb+1ast, D.Morgan 24+10reb+11ast, A.Ali 15+3reb+1ast, A.Rayan 12+3reb+1ast, J.Friday 6+3reb+2ast, A.Reda 4+1reb+1ast
Al Taawoun: D.Gilmore 24+22reb+2ast, M.Loncar 16+19reb+2ast, K.Mahmoud 14+3reb+1ast, B.Murad 4+5reb+3ast, A.Omar 2+1reb, A.Faisal 1+1reb

Al Salam - Al Nassr 68-85

There was no surprise in Al-Awamiyah where 10th ranked Al Salam (1-7) was defeated by top-ranked Al Nassr (8-0) 85-68 on Friday. Al Nassr had a 36-25 advantage in offensive rebounds. Worth to mention a great performance of American Carlton Bragg Jr. (208-1995, college: N.Mexico) who helped to win the game recording a double-double by scoring 17 points and 12 rebounds (on 7-of-8 shooting from the field) and the other American import guard PJ Hardy (185-1998, college: Louisiana) who added 14 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists during the contest. Four Al Nassr players scored in double figures. American swingman Brandon Spearman (191-1991, college: Hawaii) responded with 20 points and 5 rebounds and the former international guard Yazeed Fallatah (182-1990) scored 6 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists and 6 steals. Al Nassr have an impressive eight-game winning streak. They keep a position of league leader, which they share with Al Hilal. Al Salam lost sixth consecutive game. They keep the tenth place with seven games lost. Al Nassr will meet Al Ahli (#4) in the next round. Al Salam will play against Al Taawoun (#11) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Al Nassr: C.Bragg Jr. 17+12reb+2ast, T.Almuhanna 17+4ast, P.Purifoy 16+4reb+2ast, P.Hardy 14+7reb+6ast, H.Raed 9+3reb+2ast, A.Jallas Nasser 8+14reb+2ast
Al Salam: B.Spearman 20+5reb+1ast, M.Wineglass 12+6reb+1ast, W.Chism 9+8reb, A.Bader 8+2reb+3ast, A.Nimer Hussain 7+3reb+1ast, Y.Fallatah 6+11reb+4ast

Al Wehda - Al Ahli 81-61

We could consider it a predictable result in the game between close teams in Mecca where fifth ranked Al Wehda (5-3) smashed one of their biggest challengers Al Ahli (6-2) 81-61 on Friday. Strangely Al Ahli outrebounded Al Wehda 48-30 including a 21-4 advantage in offensive rebounds. Worth to mention a great performance of American guard Donte McGill (190-1995, college: FIU, agency: Green Sports Management) who helped to win the game recording 29 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists and Senegalese-Spanish power forward Mamadou Samb (210-1989) who added 22 points and 8 rebounds during the contest. McGill is a former Eurobasket Summer League player, which is considered top international summer league in the market. Four Al Wehda players scored in double figures. The former international Ali Shubayli (190-1996) responded with a double-double by scoring 19 points and 13 rebounds and American Hollis Thompson (203-1991, college: Georgetown) produced a double-double by scoring 13 points and 12 rebounds. Al Ahli's coach Ali Alsanhani rotated ten players seeing no chance for a win. Al Wehda maintains fifth position with 5-3 record. Defending champion Al Ahli keeps the fourth place with two games lost. Al Wehda will meet Al Khaleej (#8) in the next round. Al Ahli will play against the league's second-placed Al Nassr (#2) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Al Wehda: D.McGill 29+5reb+5ast, M.Samb 22+8reb+2ast, A.Ayob 12+6reb+1ast, M.Ahmed 10+3reb+1ast, B.Abdulmajeed 3+2reb, Q.Alaa 3+4reb+1ast
Al Ahli: A.Shubayli 19+13reb+2ast, H.Thompson 13+12reb+2ast, H.Binmohammed 10+3reb+4ast, M.Abdulrahman 5+1reb+2ast, D.Liggins 5+9reb+1ast, K.Mohammed 4+5reb+1ast

Al Fateh - Al Hilal 101-108

Very expected game in Al Hasa where 7th ranked Al Fateh (3-5) was defeated by top-ranked Al Hilal (8-0) 108-101 on Saturday. Al Hilal outrebounded Al Fateh 51-31 including a 34-23 advantage in defensive rebounds. Al Hilal looked well-organized offensively handing out 22 assists. Worth to mention a great performance of American guard Antwan Scott (185-1992, college: Colorado St.) who helped to win the game recording a triple-double by scoring 36 points (!!!), 12 rebounds and 11 assists and the former international center Mohammed Alsuwailem (211-1998) who added 22 points and 22 rebounds during the contest. American-Dominican forward Edgar Sosa (189-1988, college: Louisville) responded with 39 points (!!!) and 8 assists and American forward Anthony Fairley (203-1999, college: Miles) produced a double-double by scoring 13 points, 15 rebounds and 6 assists. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Al Hilal have an impressive eight-game winning streak. They keep a position of league leader, which they share with Al Nassr. Al Fateh lost fourth consecutive game. They keep the seventh place with five games lost. They share the position with Al Khaleej and Al Safa. Al Hilal will meet Ittihad (#3) in the next round, which may be the game of the day. Al Fateh will play against Deba (#12) in Tabuk and hope to secure a win.
Top scorers:
Al Hilal: A.Scott 36+12reb+11ast, D.Walton 28+5reb, A.Mohammed 22+22reb+2ast, M.Abdulrahman 11+4reb+2ast, N.Alabsi 7+1reb+5ast, H.Zakaria 2
Al Fateh: E.Sosa 39+3reb+8ast, A.Mohammed 16+6reb+12ast, F.Khalid 15+4reb+1ast, A.Fairley 13+15reb+6ast, A.Al-Tamamr 6, A.Saad 5+1reb

Ohod - Ittihad 91-89

Ittihad (7-1) recorded its first loss in Medina on Friday night. Visitors were edged by seventh ranked Ohod (4-4) 91-89. It ended at the same time the seven-game winning streak of Ittihad. The best player for the winners was South Sudanese-Australian forward Deng Deng (203-1992, college: Baylor) who had a double-double by scoring 23 points and 16 rebounds. The former international point guard Fahad Belal (181-1991) chipped in 18 points and 6 assists. Five Ohod players scored in double figures. American power forward Latavious Williams (203-1989) produced a double-double by scoring 29 points and 14 rebounds and his fellow American import guard Kevin Murphy (197-1990, college: Tenn Tech) added 26 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists respectively for the guests. Ohod have a solid four-game winning streak. They moved-up to sixth place. Ittihad at the other side keeps the third position with one game lost. Ohod are looking forward to face Al Safa (#9) in Safwa in the next round. Ittihad will play at home against the league's leader Al Hilal (#1) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Ohod: D.Deng 23+16reb, F.Belal 18+1reb+6ast, S.Mohammad 14+3reb+1ast, A.Abdulaziz 12+4reb+1ast, J.Simmons 11+8reb+2ast, A.Almukhtar 7+1reb+2ast
Ittihad: L.Williams 29+14reb+2ast, K.Murphy 26+10reb+5ast, M.AlMarwani 16+11reb+3ast, M.Almarwani 5+6reb+5ast, J.Al Kabe 5+3reb+2ast, J.Edwards Jr. 5

Al Khaleej - Deba 81-29

Bottom-ranked Deba (0-8) tried to put together a comeback for its first victory of the season, but they fell short in the 81-29 loss to ninth ranked Al Khaleej (3-5) in on Friday evening. They dominated down low during the game scoring 48 of its points in the paint compared to Deba's 18. They outrebounded Deba 38-11 including a 25-8 advantage in defensive rebounds. Worth to mention a great performance of Congolese-French forward Nobel Boungou-Colo (202-1988) who helped to win the game recording 12 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists and Mahdi Alzawad who added 12 points and 5 rebounds during the contest. Al Khaleej's coach felt very confident that he used entire bench which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. Suhail Ibrahim responded with a double-double by scoring 19 points and 10 rebounds and Ghareeb Alrashid scored 10 points. Al Khaleej moved-up to seventh place, which they share with Al Fateh and Al Safa. Loser Deba still closes the standings with eight games lost. They share the position with Al Taawoun. Al Khaleej will meet at home higher ranked Al Wehda (#5) in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Deba will play against Al Fateh (#7) and looks forward to get finally their first victory.
Top scorers:
Al Khaleej: M.Almutairi 12, N.Boungou-Colo 12+7reb+7ast, A.Mahdi 12+5reb+2ast, C.Derek 10+4ast, A.Mohammed 6+7reb+1ast, J.Farr 6+6reb
Deba: I.Suhail 19+10reb+1ast, A.Ghareeb 10+1reb+2ast, H.Fahd 0+1ast,