AL HALA and Riffa last night registered hard-earned victories in Week 25 of the Zain Bahrain Basketball League.
Hala survived a sub-par second-half to defeat Sitra 78-70 while Riffa cruised past Isa Town 90-56 at Zain Arena in Um Al Hassam.
Hala and Riffa are both vying for a spot in the top four of the standings.
In Hala’s triumph, towering American professional Loren Woods combined with Bahraini star Hasan Gerashi for 45 points to spearhead their team to victory.
Woods finished with 22 points and 19 rebounds while Gerashi top scored with 23 and had nine rebounds.
Hala took a 20-13 lead at the end of the first quarter and then stretched it to 44-24 by half-time.
Sitra battled back in the third and fourth quarters, outscoring Hala both times, and got to within two point, 67-69, with three minute 42 seconds to go in the final canto on a Hassan Nasser lay-up.
But that was as close as they would get as Hala with six unanswered points sealed the game.
American Steven Toyloy and Mohsin Abdulredha scored 20 points each for Sitra. Toyloy also had 13 rebounds. Abdulla Ali chipped in with 15.
Hala improved to 15-8 win-loss record for 38 points and a fifth spot on the table. Sitra dropped to 7-16 and 30 points for ninth place in the 13-team table.
Meanwhile, Riffa used a dominant second quarter to turn a 20-all deadlock at the end of the first quarter to a 44-26 lead at the interval. They coasted in the final half, and enjoyed leads of up to 34 points.
Effected
US import Marcel Jones poured in 33 points and effected 23 rebounds and seven assists for a brilliant all-round performance.
Ali Jassim came off the bench to contribute 14 points, the only other player to register double-digit figures.
Habeeb Sami had 22 for Isa Town and Sayed Mohamed Habib 10.
Riffa rose to 15-8 for 38 points and Isa Town fell to 7-16 and 25 points.
League action continues tonight with Al Ahli taking on Bahrain Club at 6pm followed by Al Hidd facing Samaheej at 7.45pm.