CHAMPIONS Manama crushed Samaheej 105-47 while Muharraq beat Al Ettihad 89-82 last night during the third week of action in the 2018/2019 Zain Bahrain Basketball League.
Both games were played at Zain Arena in Um Al Hassam.
With the results, both Manama and Muharraq remained unbeaten after three games and they currently top the league standings.
Manama were unrelenting in their game against Samaheej, during which they held their opponents to single digits in two quarters.
In the first quarter, Manama raced out to a 22-4 lead and then extended it to 45-19 at the half-time break.
In the third, Manama continued their onslaught and stretched their lead to 72-38, and then in the final canto poured in 33 points while holding Samaheej to just nine to close out the lopsided win.
The final 58-point margin was also Manama’s biggest lead in the contest. All but one of their 12-player roster scored in the game.
Ahmed Najaf came off the bench to top all scorers with 25 points while also grabbing 13 rebounds. Mozamel Ameer added 19 points, while skipper Mohammed Hussain chipped in with 17 points including five three-pointers.
American professional Wayne Chism added 11 markers and 13 boards.
Output
Najaf’s output was part of a 62-point effort from Manama’s substitutes, who outscored their counterparts from Samaheej by 50 points. Mujtaba Ismaeel was the leading scorer for Samaheej in defeat, while Hussain Busafwan added 11.
In Muharraq’s game against Ettihad, the victors built a big lead early on and then did enough to stay ahead for the remainder of the contest en route to securing the win.
Muharraq built a comfortable 33-20 lead after the first quarter but Ettihad fought back to within 40-49 at the interval. In the third, they continued to chip away at the deficit and were within 61-67 with one period to play.
In the final canto, Ettihad had a late rally that made it 82-88 on a Mile Ilic jump shot with 25 seconds to go. But that was as close as they would get and Ahmed Hassan pegged the final score with one of two free-throws and just nine seconds remaining.
Muharraq were led by the three-headed monster of Kadhem Majed, Hassan and American professional Sean Williams, who combined for 70 of their team’s output.
Majed was their leading scorer with 24, while Hassan and Williams each had 23. Williams also grabbed 12 rebounds and blocked six shots.
Frontcourt mate Ali Shukrallah had just five points but took down an impressive 18 rebounds and also had three steals.
Serbian Mile Ilic led Ettihad with a fine effort of 26 points, 22 rebounds, six blocks and three steals while Ali Ghadeer had 28 points for Ettihad, who suffered their first loss in three games.
League action continues tomorrow night at the same venue with another two games on the cards.
In the early fixture at 6pm, Riffa battle Al Najma. It will be followed at 7.45pm by Al Ahli facing Bahrain Club.
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