BAHRAIN Club came away with a stunning 86-80 victory over Al Ettihad last night in the 2018/2019 Zain Bahrain Basketball League.
Nuwaidrat, meanwhile, posted an 86-74 win over Samaheej.
Both games were played at Zain Basketball Arena in Um Al Hassam. They were part of the 13th week of action this season.
Bahrain Club had an outstanding start in their game, racing out to a commanding 35-14 lead at the end of the first quarter. They were outscored in the remaining three periods by Ettihad, but their early lead was big enough for them to hold on until the final buzzer.
Khalid Ali had a fantastic game scoring 32 points including six three-pointers. He also had nine rebounds and two steals.
American professional Lester Ferguson added 25 points while grabbing 18 rebounds in the contest. Mohamed Khalil chipped in with 11 in the win.
Nader Ali had 16 points to pace Etihad, who played without the services of seven-foot Serbian professional Mile Ilic. Ali Ghadeer and Ali Helal both contributed 15 points, while Mohamed Yusuf had 14 in the loss.
The result earned Bahrain Club only their third win in 11 games, while Ettihad were dealt their sixth loss to go along with five wins.
In yesterday’s other game, Nuwaidrat had a good start against Samaheej and did just enough over the remainder of the tie to claim the big win.
They led 32-19 at the end of the first quarter, which they stretched to 56-35 at the half. They cruised the rest of the way enjoying leads as big as 24 markers.
Turnovers
US import Curtis Washington was a force for the winners. He scored 32 points, grabbed 18 rebounds and dished out five assists while committing zero turnovers.
Ebrahim Albasri added 16 and Hasan Madan 11 in the win.
For Samaheej, newly signed American-Bahamian professional Mark St Fort was their leading scorer with 25 points. He also had 15 rebounds in the game.
Skipper Hussain Busafwan added 18 while Isa Ebrahim had 13 and 16 rebounds in the loss.
Nuwaidrat improved to a 3-8 win-loss record while Samaheej suffered their 11th straight loss, as they remained winless so far.
League action continues tonight with Al Najma facing Sitra at 5.45pm followed by a titanic match-up between Manama and Al Ahli at 7.45pm.