Round 6: Zob Ahan hand first defeat to Beirut Club

Here is the last round review presented by Job Market.

The most crucial game of the last round was the first loss of Lebanese Beirut Club (3-1) in Esfahan on Wednesday night. Visitors were defeated by Iranian Zob Ahan (3-1) 79-72. It ended at the same time the three-game winning streak of Beirut Club. It was a key game for the top position in the league. Zob Ahan looked well-organized offensively handing out 23 assists. The best player for the winners was point guard Sajjad Mashayekhi (180-1994) who had a double-double by scoring 14 points, 11 assists and 4 steals. Arsalan Kazemi (200-1990, college: Oregon, agency: BIG) chipped in 15 points and 11 rebounds. At the other side the best for losing team was American forward Kenneth Horton (201-1989, college: CCSU, agency: Octagon Europe) who recorded 19 points (on 7-of-9 shooting from the field). Zob Ahan have a solid three-game winning streak. They keep a position of league leader, which they share with 3 other teams including defeated Beirut Club. Both teams do not play next round, which will be an opportunity for some rest.
Bottom-ranked Syrian Al Ittihad (0-4) tried to put together a comeback for its first victory of the season, but they fell short in the 100-85 loss to sixth ranked Jordanian Orthodox (2-2) in Amman. It was a good game for American power forward Brandon Peterson (203-1990, college: Arkansas St.) who led his team to a victory with a double-double by scoring 29 points, 16 rebounds and 4 assists. Darrin Dorsey contributed with 11 points and 14 assists for the winners. Forward Anthouny Bakar (197-1994) replied with 23 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists for Al Ittihad. Orthodox moved-up to fourth place, which they share with 3 other teams. Defending Syrian champion Al Ittihad still closes the standings with four games lost. They share the position with Al Bashaer. Both teams do not play next round, which will be an opportunity for some rest.
The game in Doha was also quite interesting. Top-ranked Kuwaiti Kuwait (4-0) played at the court of 5th ranked Qatari Al Sadd (1-3). Kuwait defeated Al Sadd 94-84 on Tuesday. Cady Lalanne had a double-double by scoring 20 points and 14 rebounds to lead the charge for the winners. The best for the losing side was Waverly Austin with a double-double by scoring 22 points and 18 rebounds. Kuwait have a solid four-game winning streak. Defending Kuwaiti champion keeps a position of league leader, which they share with Shabab Al Ahli. Defending Qatari champion Al Sadd keeps the fifth place with three games lost. They share the position with 3 other teams. Both teams do not play next round, which will be an opportunity for some rest.

In the last game of round 6 Al Nassr was crushed by Al-Manama in Manama 105-74.
The best stats of 6th round was 24 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 steals by Babacar Dieng of Al Sadd.

Group Gulf League

Al-Manama - Al Nassr 105-74

Everything could happen at the game between two tied teams. Both fourth ranked Bahrain Al-Manama and 6th ranked Saudi Arabian Al Nassr had identical 1-2 record. This time Al-Manama used a home court advantage and crushed the opponent from Riyadh 105-74 on Monday night. Al-Manama made 18-of-20 free shots (90.0 percent) during the game. Al-Manama outrebounded Al Nassr 46-24 including a 33-17 advantage in defensive rebounds. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 24 assists comparing to just 10 passes made by Al Nassr's players. American LaMonte Ulmer (198-1986, college: URI, agency: BIG) had a double-double by scoring 16 points and 12 rebounds to lead the charge for the winners and Costa Rican-Belizean Charles Garcia (204-1988, college: Seattle) chipped in 18 points and 7 rebounds during the contest. Five Al-Manama players scored in double figures. The best for the losing side was American guard Kenny Brown (188-1991, college: Ferris St., agency: SLN) with 27 points, 6 assists and 4 steals (went 9 for 9 at the free throw line !!!) and his fellow American import swingman Brandon Austin (198-1994, college: NW Florida St.) scored 20 points and 7 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 Bahrain champion maintains fourth position with 2-2 record, which they share with 3 other teams. Al Nassr lost third consecutive game. They dropped to the fifth place with three games lost. They share the position with 3 other teams. Both teams do not play next round, which will be an opportunity for some rest.
Top scorers:
Al Nassr: K.Brown 27+3reb+6ast, B.Austin 20+7reb+2ast, A.Salem 8+1reb, T.Almuhanna 5, L.Mohammed 4+2reb, A.Campbell 4+2reb
Al-Manama: C.Garcia 18+7reb+2ast, L.Ulmer 16+12reb+2ast, H.Nawrooz 13+2reb+4ast, E.Robinson 12+6reb+7ast, R.Mustafa 12+6reb+3ast, A.Salman 10+1reb+1ast

Al Sadd - Kuwait 84-94

The game in Doha was also quite interesting. Top-ranked Kuwaiti Kuwait (4-0) played at the court of 5th ranked Qatari Al Sadd (1-3). Kuwait defeated Al Sadd 94-84 on Tuesday. Kuwait made 18-of-20 free shots (90.0 percent) during the game. Haitian center Cady Lalanne (208-1992, college: UMass, agency: BeoBasket) had a double-double by scoring 20 points and 14 rebounds to lead the charge for the winners and U.S. Virgin Islands-American forward Marcus Georges-Hunt (196-1994, college: Georgia Tech, agency: Pensack Sports) chipped in 16 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists during the contest. The best for the losing side was American-German forward Waverly Austin (211-1991, college: Oregon) with a double-double by scoring 22 points and 18 rebounds and forward Babacar Dieng (197-1997) produced a double-double by scoring 24 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 steals. Five Kuwait and four Al Sadd players scored in double figures. Kuwait have a solid four-game winning streak. Defending Kuwaiti champion keeps a position of league leader, which they share with Shabab Al Ahli. Defending Qatari champion Al Sadd keeps the fifth place with three games lost. They share the position with 3 other teams. Both teams do not play next round, which will be an opportunity for some rest.
Top scorers:
Al Sadd: B.Dieng 24+10reb+5ast, W.Austin 22+18reb+1ast, V.Blue 20+6reb+6ast, A.Faisal 12+2reb, O.Saad 5+5reb+5ast, S.Mohamed 1+1ast
Kuwait: C.Lalanne 20+14reb, M.Georges-Hunt 16+6reb+4ast, A.Hamad 14+5reb+1ast, J.Pullen 13+1reb+2ast, M.Adnan 11+9reb+4ast, M.Mustafa 8+3reb

Group West Asia

Zob Ahan - Beirut Club 79-72

The most crucial game of the last round was the first loss of Lebanese Beirut Club (3-1) in Esfahan on Wednesday night. Visitors were defeated by Iranian Zob Ahan (3-1) 79-72. It ended at the same time the three-game winning streak of Beirut Club. It was a key game for the top position in the league. Zob Ahan looked well-organized offensively handing out 23 assists. The best player for the winners was point guard Sajjad Mashayekhi (180-1994) who had a double-double by scoring 14 points, 11 assists and 4 steals. Arsalan Kazemi (200-1990, college: Oregon, agency: BIG) chipped in a double-double by scoring 15 points and 11 rebounds. At the other side the best for losing team was American forward Kenneth Horton (201-1989, college: CCSU, agency: Octagon Europe) who recorded 19 points (on 7-of-9 shooting from the field) and swingman Elias Rustom (197-1987) added 13 points and 6 rebounds respectively. Five Zob Ahan and four Beirut Club players scored in double figures. Zob Ahan have a solid three-game winning streak. They keep a position of league leader, which they share with 3 other teams including defeated Beirut Club. Both teams do not play next round, which will be an opportunity for some rest.
Top scorers:
Beirut Club: K.Horton 19+3reb+2ast, E.Rustom 13+6reb+2ast, C.Thomas 10+4reb+4ast, M.Haidar 10+5reb+2ast, G.Hadidian 8+4reb+1ast, R.Akl 7+2reb+8ast
Zob Ahan: F.Aslani 16+1reb+3ast, A.Kazemi 15+11reb+2ast, S.Mashayekhi 14+4reb+11ast, A.Zangeneh 10+6reb+3ast, M.Hassanzadeh 10+5reb, M.Reza Akbari 6+2reb

Orthodox - Al Ittihad 100-85

Bottom-ranked Syrian Al Ittihad (0-4) tried to put together a comeback for its first victory of the season, but they fell short in the 100-85 loss to sixth ranked Jordanian Orthodox (2-2) in Amman. Their players were unselfish on offense dishing 27 assists. It was a good game for American power forward Brandon Peterson (203-1990, college: Arkansas St.) who led his team to a victory with a double-double by scoring 29 points, 16 rebounds and 4 assists. The other American import point guard Darrin Dorsey (188-1987, college: DWU) contributed with a double-double by scoring 11 points and 14 assists for the winners. Forward Anthouny Bakar (197-1994) replied with 23 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists and American point guard Chris Darrington (185-1997, college: Toledo) added 18 points and 5 assists in the effort for Al Ittihad. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Orthodox moved-up to fourth place, which they share with 3 other teams. Defending Syrian champion Al Ittihad still closes the standings with four games lost. They share the position with Al Bashaer. Both teams do not play next round, which will be an opportunity for some rest.
Top scorers:
Al Ittihad: A.Bakar 23+8reb+6ast, C.Darrington 18+4reb+5ast, N.Issa 14+1reb+3ast, R.Delph 13+12reb+2ast, J.Saddir 7+5reb+1ast, T.Saleh 6+4reb+1ast
Orthodox: B.Peterson 29+16reb+4ast, F.Ibrahim 17+6reb+5ast, M.Hussein 16+8reb+2ast, D.Dorsey 11+4reb+14ast, A.Ashraf 11+2reb, A.Alhamarsheh 9+6reb+2ast



Tags : SAJJAD MASHAYEKHI, ZOB AHAN ISFAHAN, WEST ASIA SUPER LEAGUEN BASKETBALL