SBL Round 6 (Regular Season): Al Nasr lose to Al Ahli

What a coincidence that all visitors won their games. Here is the last round review presented by Job Market.

The most crucial game of the last round was the first loss of Al Nasr (5-1) in Riyadh on Friday night. Hosts were rolled over by Al Ahli (6-0) 97-76. It ended at the same time the five-game winning streak of Al Nasr. It was a key game for the top position in the league. Al Ahli had a 36-23 advantage in offensive rebounds. They shot the lights out from three sinking 14 long-distance shots on high 58.3 percentage. Great defensive blocking was one of the keys in this match when Al Ahli made 8 blocks. The best player for the winners was who scored 22 points and 5 rebounds (on 9-of-10 shooting from the field). American forward Alfonzo McKinnie (202-1992, college: Green Bay) chipped in 14 points and 11 rebounds. Al Ahli's coach Ali Alsanhani felt very confident that he used 11 players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. At the other side the best for losing team was Algerian Mohamed Harat (198-1990) who recorded a double-double by scoring 16 points and 11 rebounds. Undefeated Al Ahli have an impressive six-game winning streak. They maintain first position with 6-0 record. Al Nasr at the other side dropped to the third place with one game lost. Al Ahli are looking forward to face league's second-placed Al-Ula in the next round and it will be for sure the game of the week. Al Nasr will play against Al Khaleej and is hoping to prove to their fans that the loss was just an accident.
Another exciting game was played in Medina between eighth ranked Mudhar and 7th ranked Ohod where Mudhar (2-4) crushed Ohod (1-5) on the road with 38-point difference 102-64. It was a good game for who led his team to a victory with a double-double by scoring 26 points, 16 rebounds and 6 assists (on 11-of-14 shooting from the field). Vante Hendrix contributed with 26 points, 13 rebounds and 9 assists (on 10-of-13 shooting from the field) for the winners. Mohammed Alhawsawi replied with 21 points and 7 rebounds for Ohod. Mudhar moved-up to sixth place, which they share with Al Fateh. Ohod at the other side dropped to the ninth position with five games lost. Mudhar will play against higher ranked Al Salam (#5) in Al-Awamiyah in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Ohod will play on the road against Al Ittihad (#4) in Jeddah to get more than just one victory in their record.
Bottom-ranked Al Khaleej (0-6) tried to put together a comeback for its first victory of the season, but they fell short in the 71-68 loss to fifth ranked Al Salam (3-3) in on Friday evening. Stephen Hurt had a double-double by scoring 26 points and 24 rebounds to lead the charge for the winners. The best for the losing side was Mahdi Alzawad with a double-double by scoring 13 points and 10 rebounds. Al Salam maintains fifth position with 3-3 record. Loser Al Khaleej still closes the standings with six games lost. Al Salam will meet at home Mudhar (#7) in the next round. Al Khaleej will play against Al Nasr and hopes to get finally their first victory.

In the last game of round 6 Al Ittihad crushed Al Fateh in Jeddah 99-74.



Al Nasr - Al Ahli 76-97

The most crucial game of the last round was the first loss of Al Nasr (5-1) in Riyadh on Friday night. Hosts were rolled over by Al Ahli (6-0) 97-76. It ended at the same time the five-game winning streak of Al Nasr. It was a key game for the top position in the league. Al Ahli had a 36-23 advantage in offensive rebounds. They shot the lights out from three sinking 14 long-distance shots on high 58.3 percentage. Great defensive blocking was one of the keys in this match when Al Ahli made 8 blocks. The best player for the winners was who scored 22 points and 5 rebounds (on 9-of-10 shooting from the field). American forward Alfonzo McKinnie (202-1992, college: Green Bay) chipped in a double-double by scoring 14 points and 11 rebounds. Five Al Ahli players scored in double figures. Al Ahli's coach Ali Alsanhani felt very confident that he used 11 players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. At the other side the best for losing team was Algerian Mohamed Harat (198-1990) who recorded a double-double by scoring 16 points and 11 rebounds and added 16 points and 8 rebounds respectively. Al Ahli have an impressive six-game winning streak. They maintain first position with 6-0 record. Al Nasr at the other side dropped to the third place with one game lost. Al Ahli are looking forward to face league's second-placed Al-Ula in the next round and it will be for sure the game of the week. Al Nasr will play against Al Khaleej and is hoping to prove to their fans that the loss was just an accident.
Top scorers:
Al Nasr: B.Hardy 17+3reb+2ast, K.Musab 16+8reb, M.Harat 16+11reb+3ast, J.Nasser 9+5reb+1ast, U.Iroegbu 9+3reb+3ast, M.Thamer 6+7reb
Al Ahli: S.Ali 22+5reb+1ast, W.Reed 15+6reb+1ast, A.McKinnie 14+11reb+2ast, J.Patton 14+11reb+1ast, K.Abdel-Gabar 11+3reb+6ast, B.Fahad 9+4reb+2ast

Al Fateh - Al Ittihad 74-99

The game between closely ranked teams ended with 5th ranked Al Fateh's (2-4) home loss to fourth ranked Al Ittihad (4-2) 74-99 on Friday. Al Ittihad looked well-organized offensively handing out 25 assists. American point guard Erick Neal (178-1995, college: UT Arlington) had a double-double by scoring 17 points, 6 rebounds, 14 assists and 5 steals to lead the charge for the winners and the other American import forward Jarell Eddie (201-1991, college: Virginia Tech, agency: Octagon Europe) chipped in 21 points and 5 rebounds during the contest. Neal is a former Eurobasket Summer League player, which is considered top international summer league in the market. Five Al Ittihad players scored in double figures. Coach Slobodan Subotic's team controlled all game and the coach could let to play 11 players and allowed the starting five to rest. The best for the losing side was Serbian center Lazar Nekic (213-1999, college: LMU, agency: Allstars Agency) with 23 points and 6 rebounds and Senegalese-Spanish power forward Mamadou Samb (210-1989, agency: Allstars Agency) produced a double-double by scoring 10 points, 10 rebounds and 4 assists. Defending champion maintains fourth position with 4-2 record. Loser Al Fateh dropped to the sixth place with four games lost. They share the position with Mudhar. Al Ittihad will meet at home Ohod (#9) in the next round where they are favorite. Al Fateh will play against Al Khewaildia and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Al Fateh: L.Nekic 23+6reb+2ast, A.Ali 15+2reb+4ast, M.Samb 10+10reb+4ast, A.Hazim 8+4reb+1ast, A.Hesham 7+2reb+5ast, A.Rayan 6+2ast
Al Ittihad: J.Eddie 21+5reb, E.Neal 17+6reb+14ast, A.Osama 12+1reb+2ast, A.Mohammed 11+4reb+2ast, I.Fall-Faye 10+9reb, A.Mathna 8+2reb+3ast

Ohod - Mudhar 64-102

Another exciting game was played in Medina between eighth ranked Mudhar and 7th ranked Ohod where Mudhar (2-4) crushed Ohod (1-5) on the road with 38-point difference 102-64. Mudhar had a 37-25 advantage in offensive rebounds. Their players were unselfish on offense dishing 27 assists. It was a good game for who led his team to a victory with a double-double by scoring 26 points, 16 rebounds and 6 assists (on 11-of-14 shooting from the field). American guard Vante Hendrix (196-1998, college: CSUN, agency: BIG) contributed with a double-double by scoring 26 points, 13 rebounds and 9 assists (on 10-of-13 shooting from the field) for the winners. Mohammed Alhawsawi replied with 21 points and 7 rebounds and American forward Alfonzo McKinnie (202-1992, college: Green Bay) added 15 points and 5 rebounds in the effort for Ohod. Mudhar moved-up to sixth place, which they share with Al Fateh. Ohod at the other side dropped to the ninth position with five games lost. Mudhar will play against higher ranked Al Salam (#5) in Al-Awamiyah in the next round and it may be quite challenging game. Ohod will play on the road against Al Ittihad (#4) in Jeddah to get more than just one victory in their record.
Top scorers:
Ohod: A.Mohammed 21+7reb+1ast, A.Mohammad 15+5reb+3ast, A.Amjad 11+6reb+3ast, F.Abdulrahman 9+4reb+4ast, A.Sultan 4+5reb+1ast, O.Ahmed 3+7reb+2ast
Mudhar: V.Hendrix 26+13reb+9ast, D.Jason 26+16reb+6ast, A.Alhassan 24+3reb+3ast, A.Mosa 9+8reb+3ast, A.Mohammed 9+1reb+3ast, A.Saleh 3+2reb+2ast

Al Khaleej - Al Salam 68-71

Bottom-ranked Al Khaleej (0-6) tried to put together a comeback for its first victory of the season, but they fell short in the 71-68 loss to fifth ranked Al Salam (3-3) in on Friday evening. American forward Stephen Hurt (211-1993, college: Kansas St., agency: Allstars Agency) had a double-double by scoring 26 points and 24 rebounds to lead the charge for the winners and the other American import forward Alex Young (198-1989, college: IUPUI, agency: Allstars Agency) chipped in 29 points and 8 rebounds during the contest. The best for the losing side was American point guard Erick Neal (178-1995, college: UT Arlington) with a double-double by scoring 13 points and 10 rebounds and the other his fellow American import import forward Jarell Eddie (201-1991, college: Virginia Tech, agency: Octagon Europe) scored 13 points and 9 rebounds. Al Salam maintains fifth position with 3-3 record. Loser Al Khaleej still closes the standings with six games lost. Al Salam will meet at home Mudhar (#7) in the next round. Al Khaleej will play against Al Nasr and hopes to get finally their first victory.
Top scorers:
Al Khaleej: E.Fawaz 13+9reb+1ast, A.Almonthadhar 13+4reb+5ast, A.Mahdi 13+10reb+1ast, A.Mohammed 11+3reb, E.Ibrahim 9+7reb+3ast, A.Abbas 5+2reb+1ast
Al Salam: A.Young 29+8reb+3ast, S.Hurt 26+24reb+2ast, A.Hadi 8+4reb+3ast, A.Ali 7+8reb+1ast, A.Reda 1+1reb+4ast, A.Talal 0