TDT | Manama
Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com
Yesterday, Bahrain’s Muharraq defeated Lebanon’s Dinamo 83-79 to advance to the quarterfinals of the 35th Arab Club Basketball Championship, currently being held in Doha, Qatar.
Australian and South Sudanese player Deng Akouth scored a first-place slam dunk off a drive and dish from Bader Abdullah Malabes, breaking a 79-all deadlock and giving Bahrain a slim two-point advantage with 38.7 seconds remaining.
Dinamo then tried to take the lead or tie the game in their subsequent possessions, but all four attempts misfired, which led to an unopposed Malabez layup on the fastbreak and the final at the final buzzer. The score was settled.
Despite Muharraq holding the lead for most of the match, it was a close match.
Dinamo rallied furiously in the final five minutes, tying the game on Radwan Slimane’s 3-point play with 57.4 seconds left, which set the stage for Akou’s decisive basket.
Muharraq will advance to Round 8 where they will face Morocco’s AS Sale.
In another Round of 16 elimination match yesterday, AS Sale defeated fellow Moroccan mountain biker Majid Tanja 88-75.
The match between Muharraq and AS Sale will take place today at 3:30pm Bahrain time. Yesterday, American professional Julius Coles Jr. became Muharraq’s top scorer with 28 points.
Akusu had 20 points and 13 rebounds, and Marabeth had 19 markers, including five 3-pointers.
For Bahrain, Ali Habib scored nine goals and Mohamed Nasser Jumaa seven. For Dynamo, Zachary Lofton led the team with 32 points and Slimane had 21 points.
Muharraq got off to a strong start in yesterday’s win, quickly building a double-digit lead and leading 25-14 at the end of the first quarter.
Bahrain continued to perform well in the second half, building their largest lead of 14 points and leading 45-37 at halftime.
Muharraq maintained a 64-56 lead after three games and managed to hold off Dinamo’s late onslaught in the final canto to advance to the next stage.
Yesterday’s result marked Muharraq’s third consecutive win in the tournament.
They opened the season with a loss to defending champions Kuwait Sports Club, but then went on to win back-to-back games against Palestine’s Braige Services and Qatar Sports Club, setting up a matchup with Dinamo.
The tournament will be held under the auspices of the Arab Basketball Federation. Muharraq is aiming to become Bahrain’s first ever tournament champion.