Muharraq-Manama basketball league finals tip off Tuesday

A thrilling best-of-three championship series between long-time rivals Muharraq and Manama is all set to decide the 2021/2022 title winners in the Zain Bahrain Basketball League. The Bahrain Basketball Association announced yesterday the schedule of games for the finals.

Game one is scheduled to be held Tuesday, to be followed by game two on Friday. Game through, if needed, will then take place on April 18. All three fixtures are scheduled to tip off at 9.30pm and they will be played at the Khalifa Sports City Arena in Isa Town.

Muharraq will be playing to secure their fourth-ever league title, with their last victory coming in the 2018/2019 season. Manama, on the other hand, will be hoping to add to their record 21 league championships. They last won the crown in the 2017/2018 campaign, which marked the tail-end of an unprecedented five titles in a row.

Both Muharraq and Manama advanced to the title series with hard-earned wins over three games in their respective Golden Square semi-finals series. Muharraq stunned backto-back champions Al Ahli to punch their tickets to the finals, while Manama held off a battling Al Hala.

Muharraq will be relying heavily on their star American combination of Dewayne Jackson and Sammy Monroe, along with their Bahraini stars including skipper Bader Abdulla Malabes, Hussain Shaker, Ali Shukrallah, Younes Kuwayed, and Abdulrahman Ghali. Manama, meanwhile, will also be looking towards their U.S. imports Devin Ebanks and Davion Berry for leadership.

Also set to give them a boost are Bahrainis Mohammed Hussain, Mohammed Ameer, Hassan Nowrooz, and Ahmed Salman, among others. The league finals are a rematch of one of the semi-finals in this season’s Khalifa bin Salman Cup, which was won by Manama in three games. The Cup final will be a oneoff contest, and Manama will be facing off with holders Ahli in their quest to secure a leagueand-cup double. The Cup title game has yet to be scheduled.