BASKETBALL – HOSTS Bahrain powered to their second successive crushing victory last night in the Fiba U16 Asia Cup Gulf Basketball Association (GBA) Qualifiers 2025, currently being held in the kingdom.
The nationals showed their class in a 93-52 thrashing of Kuwait at the Bahrain Basketball Association Arena in Umm Al Hassam. They led by as many as their 41-point winning margin, while holding their opponents to single digits in two of the game’s four quarters.
The lopsided result followed their massive 96-44 drubbing of Oman in their opening fixture of the tournament on Monday night.
The Bahrainis moved to solo first place on the tournament standings with yesterday’s result, ranked ahead of both Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, with Oman and the UAE completing the table.
The Saudis defeated their Emirati counterparts 73-30 in yesterday’s other fixture, earning them a winning start to their campaign.
Five of the six GCC countries are taking part in the GBA event, which acts as a qualifier for this year’s Fiba Asia U16 Championship, to be held in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, this September. Qatar were a late withdrawal and are the only Gulf side not hitting the hardwood.
The qualifiers are being played in league format. Action continues today with another two fixtures. Kuwait and Oman clash in the early game at 5pm, to be followed by Bahrain going up against Saudi at 7.30pm in a clash between the competition’s two remaining undefeated sides.
All fans are welcome to attend. Entrance throughout the championship is free of charge.
In Bahrain’s game against Kuwait last night, the nationals used a scintillating second quarter where they outscored the visitors 33-9, turning a narrow 25-22 lead at the end of the opening period to a commanding 58-31 advantage at the interval.
They never looked back from there, extending the gap to 80-43 after three and then cruising in the final canto.
Mohammed Adel Abdulla led five players in double figures for the victors, scoring 20 points. Hassan Oshobuge Abdulkadir and Somto Patrick Onoduenyi were once again a force in the paint. Abdulkadir had 16 points, 17 rebounds, and five steals, while Onoduenyi had 14 points, 14 boards, and four steals. Hasan Ruyan chipped in with 12 for Bahrain and Hussain Fuad Ghuloom had 10.
Abdulaziz Almutawa paced Kuwait with 13 points as they suffered their first defeat after beginning the tournament with a win over the UAE.
Two games a day are being held over the competition’s five game days, which continue until Saturday. Tomorrow is a rest day.
Following their clash with Saudi this evening, the Bahrainis then play the UAE on Friday in their concluding outing.
Bahrain are hoping to improve on their third-place finish in the previous edition of the GBA’s U16 event, which was held in 2023 in Jeddah in Saudi. They did not earn a berth in the Fiba Asia U16 Championship with their ranking, but eventually received a qualifying ticket to participate after receiving a letter of invitation from Fiba Asia.
patrick@gdnmedia.bh
&uuid=(email))