Round 9 (Regular Season): Al-Muharraq lose to Al Ahli

Here is the last round review presented by Job Market.

The biggest surprise took place in Jeddah where host Saudi Arabian Al Ahli (2-3) crushed league's leader Bahrain Al-Muharraq (3-2) 95-65 on Tuesday evening. It ended at the same time the three-game winning streak of Al-Muharraq. Al Ahli dominated down low during the game scoring 66 of its points in the paint compared to Al-Muharraq's 26. Al Ahli forced 19 Al-Muharraq turnovers and outrebounded them 40-26 including a 16-3 advantage in offensive rebounds. Al Ahli looked well-organized offensively handing out 22 assists. The best player for the winners was American Hollis Thompson (203-1991, college: Georgetown) who scored 29 points and 9 rebounds. point guard Marzouq Almuwallad (180-1992) chipped in 17 points and 9 assists. Al Ahli's coach felt very confident that he used 10 players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. At the other side the best for losing team was American forward Tyler Wilkerson (203-1988, college: Marshall) who recorded a double-double by scoring 23 points and 15 rebounds. Defending Saudi Arabian champion moved-up to third place, which they share with Al Rayyan and Al Ittihad. Al-Muharraq at the other side still keeps top position with two games lost. They share it with Sagesse and Kuwait. They were replaced at the leadership position by Al-Manama. Both teams do not play next round, which will be an opportunity for some rest.
Top ranked Kuwaiti Kuwait (3-2) recorded its second loss in Doha. Visitors were defeated by third ranked Qatari Al Rayyan (2-3) 94-90. It was a good game for American swingman Andrew White III (200-1993, college: Syracuse) who led his team to a victory with 24 points and 7 rebounds. Nick Griffin contributed with 21 points for the winners. American guard Tony Carr (196-1997, college: Penn St.) answered with 30 points for Kuwait. Kuwait's coach rotated ten players in this game, but that didn't help. Al Rayyan maintains third place with 2-3 record having just three points less than leader Al-Manama, which they share with Al Ahli and Al Ittihad. Defending Kuwaiti champion Kuwait still keeps top position with two games lost. They share it with Al-Muharraq and Sagesse. Both teams do not play next round, which will be an opportunity for some rest.
An exciting game between Top Four teams was played in Beirut. Second ranked Lebanese Sagesse faced 4th placed Iraqi Al Naft. Host Sagesse (3-2) defeated guests from Baghdad (0-5) 89-82. Jonathan Gibson stepped up and scored 29 points and 5 assists for the winners. Sagesse's coach used an eleven-player rotation and allowed the starting five to rest. The best for the losing side was Shane Gibson with 23 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists. Sagesse keeps a position of league leader, which they share with Al-Muharraq and Kuwait. Defending Iraqi champion Al Naft still closes the standings with five games lost. Both teams do not play next round, which will be an opportunity for some rest.

In the last game of round 9 Gorgan defeated Al Ittihad in a road game 80-65.

Group Gulf

Al Rayyan - Kuwait 94-90

Top ranked Kuwaiti Kuwait (3-2) recorded its second loss in Doha. Visitors were defeated by third ranked Qatari Al Rayyan (2-3) 94-90. It was a good game for American swingman Andrew White III (200-1993, college: Syracuse) who led his team to a victory with 24 points and 7 rebounds. His fellow American import guard Nick Griffin (188-1995, college: St.Peter's) contributed with 21 points for the winners. Five Al Rayyan players scored in double figures. American guard Tony Carr (196-1997, college: Penn St.) answered with 30 points and point guard Hamad Hasan (191-1997) added 19 points and 7 rebounds in the effort for Kuwait. Kuwait's coach rotated ten players in this game, but that didn't help. Al Rayyan maintains third place with 2-3 record having just three points less than leader Al-Manama, which they share with Al Ahli and Al Ittihad. Defending Kuwaiti champion Kuwait still keeps top position with two games lost. They share it with Al-Muharraq and Sagesse. Both teams do not play next round, which will be an opportunity for some rest.
Top scorers:
Kuwait: T.Carr 30+1reb+1ast, H.Hasan 19+7reb+3ast, M.Georges-Hunt 15+6reb+5ast, C.Lalanne 9+4reb, M.Adnan 8+7reb+4ast, J.Omran 6+5reb
Al Rayyan: A.White III 24+7reb+2ast, N.Griffin 21+1reb+3ast, M.Abdelkawy 12+3ast, M.Faye 12+6reb+5ast, M.Salem 10+5reb+2ast, A.Bobo Magassa 6+6reb+1ast

Al Ahli - Al-Muharraq 95-65

The biggest surprise took place in Jeddah where host Saudi Arabian Al Ahli (2-3) crushed league's leader Bahrain Al-Muharraq (3-2) 95-65 on Tuesday evening. It ended at the same time the three-game winning streak of Al-Muharraq. Al Ahli dominated down low during the game scoring 66 of its points in the paint compared to Al-Muharraq's 26. Al Ahli forced 19 Al-Muharraq turnovers and outrebounded them 40-26 including a 16-3 advantage in offensive rebounds. Al Ahli looked well-organized offensively handing out 22 assists. The best player for the winners was American Hollis Thompson (203-1991, college: Georgetown) who scored 29 points and 9 rebounds. Point guard Marzouq Almuwallad (180-1992) chipped in 17 points and 9 assists. Five Al Ahli players scored in double figures. Al Ahli's coach felt very confident that he used 10 players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. At the other side the best for losing team was American forward Tyler Wilkerson (203-1988, college: Marshall) who recorded a double-double by scoring 23 points and 15 rebounds and the other American import guard Ra'shad James (185-1990, college: Iona) added 17 points and 4 assists respectively. Defending Saudi Arabian champion moved-up to third place, which they share with Al Rayyan and Al Ittihad. Al-Muharraq at the other side still keeps top position with two games lost. They share it with Sagesse and Kuwait. They were replaced at the leadership position by Al-Manama. Both teams do not play next round, which will be an opportunity for some rest.
Top scorers:
Al-Muharraq: T.Wilkerson 23+15reb+1ast, R.James 17+3reb+4ast, B.Malabes 12+2ast, M.Ebrahim 9+3ast, M.Nasser 2+5reb+2ast, S.Ali 2+3reb
Al Ahli: H.Thompson 29+9reb+3ast, M.Almuwallad 17+2reb+9ast, A.Shubayli 15+8reb+2ast, I.Aska 15+12reb+1ast, D.Liggins 13+3reb+2ast, K.Mohammed 2+2reb+1ast

Group West Asia

Sagesse - Al Naft 89-82

An exciting game between Top Four teams was played in Beirut. Second ranked Lebanese Sagesse faced 4th placed Iraqi Al Naft. Host Sagesse (3-2) defeated guests from Baghdad (0-5) 89-82. American point guard Jonathan Gibson (188-1987, college: NM State) stepped up and scored 29 points and 5 assists for the winners and French-Lebanese power forward Karim Ezzeddine (206-1997, college: N.Mexico) chipped in 18 points and 6 rebounds. Four Sagesse players scored in double figures. Sagesse's coach used an eleven-player rotation and allowed the starting five to rest. The best for the losing side was American guard Shane Gibson (188-1990, college: Sacred Heart) with 23 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists and the other American import forward Antwaine Wiggins (203-1988, college: Charleston) scored 26 points and 5 rebounds. Sagesse keeps a position of league leader, which they share with Al-Muharraq and Kuwait. Defending Iraqi champion Al Naft still closes the standings with five games lost. Both teams do not play next round, which will be an opportunity for some rest.
Top scorers:
Al Naft: A.Wiggins 26+5reb+1ast, S.Gibson 23+6reb+6ast, A.Al-Draisawi 13+3ast, K.Hamzah 9+6reb+2ast, A.Hameed 5+10reb+1ast, H.Aldiwani 4+7reb+1ast
Sagesse: J.Gibson 29+4reb+5ast, K.Ezzeddine 18+6reb+2ast, R.Slimane 13+7reb+2ast, O.Jamaleddine 11+4reb, A.Deng 7+4reb+2ast, A.Abdel Massih 5+1reb+2ast

Al Ittihad - Gorgan 65-80

There was no surprise in Aleppo where 3rd placed Syrian Al Ittihad (2-3) was defeated by leader Iranian Gorgan (5-0) 80-65 on Thursday. Gorgan forced 20 Al Ittihad turnovers. Lebanese-American forward Norvel Pelle (208-1993, college: Iona, agency: BIG) stepped up and scored 20 points and 8 rebounds for the winners and point guard Sina Vahedi (185-2001) chipped in 17 points and 7 assists. The best for the losing side was German-Syrian power forward Mohamad Atli (203-1995) with a double-double by scoring 14 points and 10 rebounds and American guard Jeremy Kendle (186-1988, college: Bellarmine) scored 13 points. Both coaches used bench players saving starting five for next games. Gorgan have an impressive series of five victories in a row. Defending Iranian champion maintains first place with 5-0 record. Loser Al Ittihad keeps the third position with three games lost. They share it with Al Ahli and Al Rayyan. Both teams do not play next round, which will be an opportunity for some rest.
Top scorers:
Al Ittihad: A.Mohamad 14+10reb+2ast, J.Kendle 13+2reb+3ast, A.Moustafa 7+2reb+1ast, A.Bakar 7+4reb, J.Saddir 5+3reb+3ast, A.Michelsson 5+1reb+2ast
Gorgan: N.Pelle 20+8reb, W.Cherry 19+6reb+2ast, V.Sina 17+4reb+7ast, A.Azari 8+1reb, N.Rezaeifar 4+2reb, M.Sheikhi 3