SBL Round 20 (Regular Season): Ittihad gets another victory

The Regular Season in SBL is slowly approaching the end. But there may be still some important changes in the final standings in the last 3 rounds. Here is the last round review presented by Job Market.

Leader Ittihad delivered the seventeenth win on Monday night. This time they beat 5th ranked Ohod (12-7) 88-72 in Jeddah. It ended at the same time the four-game winning streak of Ohod. Ittihad dominated down low during the game scoring 54 of its points in the paint compared to Ohod's 26. They outrebounded Ohod 50-34 including 17 on the offensive glass. Ittihad looked well-organized offensively handing out 22 assists. The best player for the winners was American power forward Latavious Williams (203-1989) who had a double-double by scoring 13 points, 18 rebounds and 5 assists. The former international center Mohammed AlMarwani (206-1989) chipped in 24 points and 6 rebounds (on 11-of-14 shooting from the field). South Sudanese-Australian forward Deng Deng (203-1992, college: Baylor) produced a double-double by scoring 26 points and 21 rebounds for the guests. Ittihad (17-2) have an impressive eight-game winning streak. They maintain first position. Ohod at the other side keeps the fifth place with seven games lost. Ittihad are looking forward to face Al Hilal (#3) in Riyadh in the next round, which may be the game of the day. Ohod will play at home against Al Safa and is hoping to prove to their fans that the loss was just an accident.
Bottom-ranked Al Taawoun (0-19) tried to put together a comeback for its first victory of the season, but they fell short in the 81-80 loss to tenth ranked Al Safa (6-13) in . American guard Dallas Morgan (185, college: CMU) saved the victory by scoring 33 points (!!!), 5 rebounds and 4 assists. Jalone Friday contributed with 13 points and 5 rebounds for the winners. Bosnian center Markus Loncar (213-1996) replied with a double-double by scoring 28 points and 16 rebounds (on 10-of-13 shooting from the field) for Al Taawoun. Al Safa moved-up to ninth place. Al Taawoun at the other side still closes the standings. Al Safa will play against higher ranked Ohod (#5) in Medina in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Al Taawoun will play on the road against Al Salam (#8) in Al-Awamiyah and hopes to get finally their first victory.
The game with biggest result difference took place in Jeddah. Local Al Ahli (15-4) outscored 7th ranked Al Wehda (9-10) 101-56 on Monday night. Worth to mention a quality performance of Hollis Thompson who helped to win the game recording a double-double by scoring 26 points, 13 rebounds and 7 assists. Muhammed Ahmed responded with 25 points and 6 rebounds. The winner was already known earlier in the game, so both coaches allowed to play the bench players saving starting five for next games. Defending champion maintains fourth position with 15-4 record. Loser Al Wehda dropped to the sixth place with ten games lost. They share the position with Al Fateh. Al Ahli will meet league's second-placed Al Nassr in the next round and it may be the game of the week. Al Wehda will play against Al Khaleej (#10) and hope to secure a win.

Rest of the games of round 20 were quite predictable and ended without any surprises. Here they are:
Al Salam was defeated by Al Nassr in Riyadh 79-61. Deba beat Al Khaleej at home 107-98. Al Fateh lost to Al Hilal on the opponent's court 71-81.
The best stats of 20th round was 23 points and 15 rebounds by Mohammed Alsuwailem of Al Hilal.



Al Ahli - Al Wehda 101-56

The game with biggest result difference took place in Jeddah. Local Al Ahli (15-4) outscored 7th ranked Al Wehda (9-10) 101-56 on Monday night. Al Ahli outrebounded Al Wehda 46-26 including a 34-18 advantage in defensive rebounds. Al Ahli looked well-organized offensively handing out 28 assists comparing to just 14 passes made by Al Wehda's players. Worth to mention a quality performance of American Hollis Thompson (203-1991, college: Georgetown) who helped to win the game recording a double-double by scoring 26 points, 13 rebounds and 7 assists and the other American import forward Deandre Liggins (198-1988, college: Kentucky) who added 12 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists during the contest. Five Al Ahli players scored in double figures. American forward Muhammed Ahmed (203, college: Bridgeport) responded with 25 points and 6 rebounds and international center Thamer Mohammed (205-1997) scored 5 points and 6 rebounds. The winner was already known earlier in the game, so both coaches allowed to play the bench players saving starting five for next games. Defending champion maintains fourth position with 15-4 record. Loser Al Wehda dropped to the sixth place with ten games lost. They share the position with Al Fateh. Al Ahli will meet league's second-placed Al Nassr in the next round and it may be the game of the week. Al Wehda will play against Al Khaleej (#10) and hope to secure a win.
Top scorers:
Al Ahli: H.Thompson 26+13reb+7ast, A.Shubayli 17+4reb+2ast, B.Ayman 14+4reb+3ast, D.Liggins 12+8reb+6ast, K.Mohammed 10+6reb+2ast, I.Aska 8+6reb+2ast
Al Wehda: M.Ahmed 25+6reb+1ast, B.Abdulmajeed 7+1ast, A.Ayob 6+1reb, Q.Alaa 5+1reb+2ast, M.Thamer 5+6reb+2ast, A.Muhammad 3

Al Nassr - Al Salam 79-61

There was no surprise in Riyadh where 8th ranked Al Salam (7-12) was defeated by second ranked Al Nassr (16-3) 79-61 on Monday. 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 15 points and 20 rebounds and the other American import guard PJ Hardy (185-1998, college: Louisiana) who added 28 points during the contest. American-Bahrain Wayne Chism (206-1987, college: Tennessee) responded with a double-double by scoring 15 points and 13 rebounds and American swingman Brandon Austin (198-1994, college: NW Florida St.) scored 21 points and 5 rebounds. Both coaches used bench players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. Al Nassr maintains second position with 16-3 record behind leader Ittihad, which they share with Al Hilal. Al Salam lost fourth consecutive game. They keep the eighth place with 12 games lost. Al Nassr will meet at home Al Ahli (#4) in the next round. Al Salam will play against Al Taawoun (#12) and hope to secure a win.
Top scorers:
Al Nassr: P.Hardy 28+1reb+1ast, C.Bragg Jr. 15+20reb+1ast, C.Russell 11+4reb+2ast, A.Ayoub 8+5reb+2ast, T.Almuhanna 8+2reb+6ast, K.Musab 7+7reb
Al Salam: B.Austin 21+5reb+3ast, W.Chism 15+13reb+1ast, A.Bader 7+1ast, A.Khalid 5+6reb, Y.Fallatah 4+7reb+1ast, A.Osama 3+2reb+1ast

Al Taawoun - Al Safa 80-81

Bottom-ranked Al Taawoun (0-19) tried to put together a comeback for its first victory of the season, but they fell short in the 81-80 loss to tenth ranked Al Safa (6-13) in . They also forced 19 Al Taawoun turnovers. Strangely Al Taawoun outrebounded Al Safa 40-22 including a 33-21 advantage in defensive rebounds. American guard Dallas Morgan (185, college: CMU) saved the victory by scoring 33 points (!!!), 5 rebounds and 4 assists. The other American import center Jalone Friday (206-1996, college: NM State) contributed with 13 points and 5 rebounds for the winners. Four Al Safa players scored in double figures. Bosnian center Markus Loncar (213-1996) replied with a double-double by scoring 28 points and 16 rebounds (on 10-of-13 shooting from the field) and American forward Corey Sanders (188-1997, college: Rutgers) added 28 points, 7 rebounds and 8 assists in the effort for Al Taawoun. Al Safa moved-up to ninth place. Al Taawoun at the other side still closes the standings. Al Safa will play against higher ranked Ohod (#5) in Medina in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Al Taawoun will play on the road against Al Salam (#8) in Al-Awamiyah and hopes to get finally their first victory.
Top scorers:
Al Safa: D.Morgan 33+5reb+4ast, J.Friday 13+5reb, A.Hassan 11+2ast, D.Dixson 10+2reb, A.Ali 5+3reb+1ast, A.Musab 5+2reb+1ast
Al Taawoun: M.Loncar 28+16reb, C.Sanders 28+7reb+8ast, A.Omar 12+1reb+1ast, A.Alwaleed 7+12reb+2ast, B.Murad 3+2reb+1ast, K.Mahmoud 2+2reb+1ast

Deba - Al Khaleej 107-98

There was a small surprise in Tabuk where eleventh ranked Deba (2-17) defeated 9th ranked Al Khaleej (5-14) 107-98 on Monday. Worth to mention a great performance of American-Jamaican guard Josh Nicholas (190-1998, college: ULM) who helped to win the game recording a double-double by scoring 37 points (!!!) and 11 rebounds and Guyanese-American forward Kevin Mickle (201-1993, college: Ohio) who added 24 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists during the contest. American forward James Farr (208-1992, college: Xavier) responded with a double-double by scoring 16 points and 13 rebounds and Congolese-French forward Nobel Boungou-Colo (202-1988) scored 22 points and 4 assists. Four Deba and five Al Khaleej players scored in double figures. Deba maintains eleventh position with 2-17 record. Newly promoted Al Khaleej dropped to the tenth place with 14 games lost. Deba will meet higher ranked Al Fateh (#6) in the next round and they do not belong to the favorites in that game. Al Khaleej will play against Al Wehda (#7) in Mecca and hope to secure a win.
Top scorers:
Deba: J.Nicholas 37+11reb+3ast, K.Mickle 24+10reb+5ast, A.Abdullah 23+4reb+5ast, A.Mohammed 22+2reb, A.Loiy 1, I.Suhail 0+1reb+2ast
Al Khaleej: N.Boungou-Colo 22+4reb+4ast, A.Hassan 16+6reb, J.Farr 16+13reb+1ast, D.St.Hilaire 14+6reb+3ast, A.Al-Darweesh 13+3reb+1ast, A.Mohammed 8+2reb

Ittihad - Ohod 88-72

Leader Ittihad delivered the seventeenth win on Monday night. This time they beat 5th ranked Ohod (12-7) 88-72 in Jeddah. It ended at the same time the four-game winning streak of Ohod. Ittihad dominated down low during the game scoring 54 of its points in the paint compared to Ohod's 26. They outrebounded Ohod 50-34 including 17 on the offensive glass. Ittihad looked well-organized offensively handing out 22 assists. The best player for the winners was American power forward Latavious Williams (203-1989) who had a double-double by scoring 13 points, 18 rebounds and 5 assists. The former international center Mohammed AlMarwani (206-1989) chipped in 24 points and 6 rebounds (on 11-of-14 shooting from the field). Four Ittihad players scored in double figures. South Sudanese-Australian forward Deng Deng (203-1992, college: Baylor) produced a double-double by scoring 26 points and 21 rebounds and the former international point guard Fahad Belal (181-1991) added 12 points, 5 rebounds and 12 assists respectively for the guests. Ittihad (17-2) have an impressive eight-game winning streak. They maintain first position. Ohod at the other side keeps the fifth place with seven games lost. Ittihad are looking forward to face Al Hilal (#3) in Riyadh in the next round, which may be the game of the day. Ohod will play at home against Al Safa and is hoping to prove to their fans that the loss was just an accident.
Top scorers:
Ittihad: M.AlMarwani 24+6reb+1ast, J.Edwards Jr. 20+5reb+3ast, M.Almarwani 14+5reb+3ast, L.Williams 13+18reb+5ast, A.Mustafa 6+1reb+2ast, A.Young 4+7reb+3ast
Ohod: D.Deng 26+21reb, F.Belal 12+5reb+12ast, A.Almukhtar 12+3reb+3ast, S.Mohammad 9+4reb+1ast, F.Abdulrahman 8+1ast, A.Abdulaziz 3+1reb+2ast

Al Hilal - Al Fateh 81-71

Rather expected game in Riyadh where 6th ranked Al Fateh (9-10) was defeated by third ranked Al Hilal (16-3) 81-71 on Monday. Al Hilal made 18-of-23 free shots (78.3 percent) during the game. They also forced 21 Al Fateh turnovers. Worth to mention a great performance of the former international center Mohammed Alsuwailem (211-1998) who helped to win the game recording a double-double by scoring 23 points and 15 rebounds and the former international guard Nasser Alabsi (183-1993) who added 22 points during the contest. Mohammed Al-Saquer responded with a double-double by scoring 15 points, 11 rebounds and 5 assists and American forward Antonio Campbell (206-1994, college: Ohio) scored 15 points and 9 rebounds. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Al Fateh's coach George Geagea rotated ten players in this game, but that didn't help. Al Hilal have an impressive eight-game winning streak. They moved-up to second place, which they share with Al Nassr. Loser Al Fateh keeps the sixth position with ten games lost. They share it with Al Wehda. Al Hilal will meet at home league's leader Ittihad in the next round and it will be for sure the game of the week. Al Fateh will play against Deba (#11) and hope to secure a win.
Top scorers:
Al Hilal: A.Mohammed 23+15reb+3ast, N.Alabsi 22+3reb, T.McCallum 13+5reb+2ast, O.Albargawi 11+7reb+2ast, D.Walton 5, A.Scott 5+7reb+6ast
Al Fateh: A.Saad 16+4reb, M.Al-Saquer 15+11reb+5ast, A.Campbell 15+9reb+1ast, A.Fairley 11+7reb, A.Hazim 5+1reb+1ast, A.Hesham 4+2reb+3ast