by Danotzki Santos
Doha: Al Ahli shocked Eljaish 81-72 to register an upset victory in the Group 1 match of the Emir Cup Basketball League at the Al Gharafa Indoor Arena.
Al Ahli had the returning Cory Bradford at the helm and were in the thick of the fight early in the game as they held the Heir Apparent Cup runners-up within striking distance, 19-22, at the end of the first period, and went on to wrest the upper hand, 40-34 before the half time break.
The green shirts were on a roll leading 53-45 until Eljaish, with Ali Turki and Mohammed Bakir regaining their touch, stepped on the gas midway in the third quarter and went on a 15-2 rampage to post a 60-55 advantage going into the final quarter.
Bradford pumped his team back in the driver’s seat, 63-62 with an 8-2 charge early in the fourth, and kept Army at bay, 73-67, as the game reached the homestretch.
Meawhile, Michael Benjamin Southall, asserted his might late in the third quarter as he towered over all defenders and scored unmolested from under the basket to pull Al Sadd out of a 49-54 deficit en route to a 91-81 conquest of Al Shamal earlier in the first game.
The 6’10” Lousianna native banged 10 of his 18 markers on monster slams in the final period, collected 15 rebounds and blocked 4 shots typifying Al Sadd’s domination inside, outscoring the northerners in the paint 34-24, and outrebounding them, 45-36.
New adddition Rashad Anderson top-scored with 30 points while returning point guard Chris dela Rosa contributed 17 points and 11 assists to the Qatar Men’s League champions’ first victory in the Emir Cup.
Tyvon William led Shamal with 29 points, including an impressive 4 conversions out of 6 attempts from beyond the arc.
Newly-crowned Heir Apparent titlists Al Rayyan barge into action in the first game today and will face Al Gharafa, who won over Al Arabi in their first outing.
The Peninsula
