DEFENDING champions Manama and fellow title-hopefuls Muharraq registered contrasting victories last night in Week 14 of the Zain Bahrain Basketball League.
Manama were 114-47 runaway winners over Isa Town while Muharraq were made to sweat in a hard-earned 82-71 triumph over Nuwaidrat.
Both games were played at Zain Basketball Arena in Um Al Hassam and they kick-started the second round of the regular season.
Manama were red hot from the opening tip and they exploded for 39 points in the first quarter while holding Isa Town to just 11. They extended their lead in the second and headed into half-time with a commanding 63-26 advantage.
They continued to pile on the pressure in the final two periods and by the final whistle enjoyed a lopsided final score, which was also their biggest lead of the game at 67 points.
Hassan Nowrooz was once again the top scorer for the boys in blue. He finished with 24 points despite playing less than 20 minutes.
He was an efficient nine-of-17 from the field, including four three-pointers.
Maytham Jameel also had a nice effort of 21 markers with four triples. He also had six steals. Mohammed Hussain came off the bench to score 11, while brothers Mohammed and Younes Kuwayed each contributed nine.
All 12 of Manama’s players were able to step onto the court in the game, and all 12 were also able to make it onto the scoresheet.
Habeeb Sami scored 19 points and Mahmood Aziz chipped in with 11 in the losing cause for Isa Town.
Record
Manama improved to a league-best 12 wins after playing their 13th game. They have 25 points in first place on the standings. Isa Town suffered their 11th loss to go with 2 wins and are near bottom with 15 points.
In last night’s other game, Muharraq needed to dig deep into their arsenal to come away with a late win.
Last year’s Zain Basketball Cup winners used a 16-6 run in the final five minutes to turn a 66-all deadlock to the hard-earned result. Ahmed Hassan poured in eight points during that span, when Bader Abdulla Malabes, Mohammed Nasser and Ahmed Salman also had baskets.
Hassan finished with a game-hogh 30 points for Muharraq, including four three-pointers. He also had eight assists and six rebounds. Malabes chipped in with 17 markers while Nasser had 14 and seven rebounds.
Seven-foot, one-inch Serbian Mile Ilic paced Nuwaidrat in the contest. He had an impressive performance of 40 points and 17 rebounds, but it wasn’t enough to carry his team to the win.
Muharraq claimed their 10th win with the result. They now have 23 points in second place on the league standings. Nuwaidrat dropped to a 9-4 win-loss record but stayed in fourth place overall.
League action continues tonight with Hidd taking on Al Najma at 6pm followed by Riffa Club playing Bahrain Club at 7.45pm.