BASKETBALL – Al Hala escaped with a thrilling 91-88 overtime victory over Al Ahli last night as gameweek five tipped off in the 2026-27 Zain Bahrain Basketball League.
Hala trailed by eight points in the fourth quarter but roared back to tie the proceedings at 79-apiece at Zain Basketball Arena in Um Al Hassam Sports Complex.
Abdulqader Thani buried a pair of pressure-packed free-throws with 10.3 seconds remaining in regulation to send the contest into the extra session.
There, they again needed to overcome an early deficit and a three-pointer by Ahmed Bindayneh gave them the lead for good at 85-84 with just over two minutes remaining.
Ahli stayed within striking distance and got to within a point with a minute remaining, but Baqer Isa Mohamed made a reverse lay-up with only seconds to go on the clock to make it 89-86 and virtually ice the win – their fourth in five outings so far this campaign as they climbed to the top of the league table.
Hala led by as many as 11 points in the opening half until Ahli fought back to take a 64-55 advantage into the final frame.
They outscored their opponents 28-16 in the third quarter.
Thani finished with a game-high 31 points, including an impressive 14-of-15 from the charity stripe.
He got plenty of help from Hala stars Tony Mitchell and Bindayneh, who contributed 22 and 20 points, respectively.
Mohammed Kowayed had 24 points and Derrick Woods 22 for Ahli in their narrow loss, which was only their second of the season.
In another game yesterday at the same venue, Sitra routed Samaheej 102-60.
Sitra erupted for 30 points in the opening quarter while holding Samaheej to just nine, and they never looked back from there, leading by as many as 45 points late in the final quarter.
Salman Alkaabi led Sitra with 21 points while Ali Mohsen Ebrahim and Lamar Mallory contributed 17 apiece, with Ebrahim burying four three-pointers and Mallory taking down 10 rebounds.
Three players had 10 points each for Samaheej, including Basel Adel Husain, Ahmed Adel, and Khalid Mohammed Aqeel.
Sitra claimed triumph number two while Samaheej stayed winless with their fourth setback.
The fifth round of league action continues tonight and tomorrow at Zain Basketball Arena.
This evening, Nuwaidrat and Isa Town clash at 6pm followed by Manama taking on Al Ettihad at 8pm.
Then, tomorrow, two-time defending champions Muharraq clash with fellow-unbeaten side Al Najma in the lone contest at 8pm.
patrick@gdnmedia.bh
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