Ahli bow to Kuwait’s Kazma in Arab clubs basketball

TDT | Manama    

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Bahrain’s Al Ahli suffered a 77-90 loss to Kazma of Kuwait yesterday in their second game of the 34th Arab Clubs Basketball Championship, being played in Kuwait City.

After taking a slim 41-40 lead at the half, Ahli lost their momentum in the third period where they were outscored 18-31. They never recovered and trailed by double digits the entire final quarter, getting to within 10 points but no closer.

It was a disheartening result for the Bahrainis, who won their opening fixture on Wednesday against Al Sadd of Qatar. Maitham Jameel had 22 points off the bench for Ahli, including four three-pointers.

Jerry Dafood added 14 points and 14 rebounds while Nicolas David had 13 in the loss. For Kazma, three players scored over 20 points. Kevin Murphy led the way with 24, while Abdulaziz Alhamidi had 23 and Latavious Williams 20.

Ahli have one more game to play in Group C of the preliminary round. It will be on Saturday against Al Bashaer from Oman. Sixteen teams from across the region are taking part in the tournament, with three clubs representing host nation Kuwait.

Ahli are the only Bahraini outfit in the competition. Group A features host team Al Kuwait Sports Club, Al Ittihad of Alexandria from Egypt, Ahli Aleppo of Syria, and Al Ahly Benghazi from Libya.

Group B is comprised of defending champions Al Ahly of Egypt, Al Riyadi Club Beirut of Lebanon, Al Gharafa from Qatar, and a club from Yemen; while Group D consists of Jahra from Kuwait, Beirut Club of Lebanon, Wedad Boufarik of Algeria, and Tigris from Iraq.