| Ash-Shams size too much for smaller Al-Masad |
May 23, 2007 |
Al-Masad entered this game the heavy underdog against the bigger and more experienced Ash-Shams squad. Al-Masad needed to play a tight defensive game and protect the ball against the quick guards for Ash-Shams.
The game started off as many expected as Ash-Shams took control and went on an 18-0 run to start the game and it took Al-Masad 11 minutes to get their first basket. Turnovers hurt Al-Masad as they were soft with entry passes to centre Shazie Buttar and many were deflected or intercepted. The first half ended with Ash-Shams leading by a 24-8 margin. Ahsan Raza led the way with 10 points and 9 rebounds while Nima Baeidfar finished with 8 points.
The second half saw Al-Masad continue to struggle offensively as they were unable to move the ball freely as the Ash-Shams guards pressured the ball, they were forced to call a timeout 5:38 into the half and trailing 33-8. Raza continued to dominate the low post to the point that Al-Masad captain Mostafa Azzam tried to cover him and despite being 6 inches shorter was able to slow him down. The game ended with 49-20 win for Ash-Shams. Raza led the way with 20 points and 12 rebounds while Baeidfar finished with 13 points – but shot a poor 2 for 11 from the 3-point area. Al-Masad was led by rookie Shazie Buttar with 7 points and 6 rebounds. Al-Masad was out rebounded by a 39-21 margin which was the big difference in this game.
Looking to next week, Al-Masad will face Sharh in their final game of the season and will need to shut down Sharh’s smooth guard Hassan Moutdayne who has been lighting up the scoreboard lately. |
