Bahrainis suffer tough loss to UAE in men’s basketball

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Bahrain were dealt a disheartening 66-71 loss to the UAE last night in their first game of the men’s basketball tournament at the third GCC Games in Kuwait. The nationals had a rousing start and took a double-digit lead in the first half, but could not come up with the much-needed baskets down the stretch to come away with the victory.

After Muzamil Ameer put Bahrain ahead 66-64 with a three-pointer and just under three minutes to play, the Emiratis closed the game out with a 7-0 run to seal the win. Omar Alameri answered Ameer’s basket with his own triple to give the UAE the lead for good, 67-66.

Then after a Wayne Chism miss, Mohamed Albreiki scored in the paint for a 69-66 advantage with 24.3 seconds to play. The Bahrainis still had a chance to tie the game or reduce the deficit, but after a timeout, talented young guard Mustafa Hussain turned the ball over and the Qais Alshabebi iced the result for the Emiratis with two free-throws.

Hussain and backcourt mate Maitham Jameel finished as Bahrain’s top scorers with 13 points apiece, while CJ Giles added nine to go with 11 rebounds and Ameer brothers Muzamil and Mohammed contributed eight apiece.

Hesham Sarhan scored seven for the Bahrainis in the loss. For the UAE, Mohamed Albreiki and Hamid Albreiki finished as their top scorers, with 23 and 18 points, respectively. Rashed Alzaabi added 11 in the victory. The nationals had a strong start to yesterday’s game and led 19-9 at the end of the first quarter.