Darius Rice talks about his 19 point, 13 rebound performance in the Legends' win.

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) - The Texas Legends (8-5) fell to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants (4-10) 107-97.

The Legends went into halftime up 51-47 but gave up 34 points and the lead in the third quarter. Texas was led by Christian Eyenga and Sean Singletary both with 22 points. Jared Cunningham tallied 18 points while Sean Williams and Darius Rice added 12 and 11 respectively.

The Mad Ants’ Orlando Johnson had a game high 24 points while Ron Howard added 23. Luke Harangody, newly acquired by Fort Wayne from the Canton Charge, boasted the game’s only double-double with 19 points and 18 rebounds.


(wane.com)

REIGNING champions Manama last night defeated fierce rivals Muharraq by 110-109 to send the Bahrain Basketball Cup Final to a third and deciding game.

Played out in an electric atmosphere in front of a partisan crowd of several hundred at the Zain Bahrain Basketball Arena in Umm Al Hassam, the two powerhouses went almost score-for-score for the duration of what was simply an epic battle but it was Manama who gained revenge for their defeat in the opening game on Sunday.

That win, by a margin of 76-71, meant Muharraq went into last night's match looking to seal the title but Manama were never going to give up on their crown without a monumental fight and they duly set their stall out from the opening exchanges.

After Mohammed Hassan opened the scoring with a well-taken three-pointer, Manama held the lead for much of the first period but Muharraq gradually clawed their way back into the equation.

Locked at 22-22 approaching the hooter, the final second of play in that opening 10-minute spell remarkably produced a further three points for both sides.

Play continued in much the same vein in the second quarter, with the class and sheer intensity on show only further reflecting the gap that exists between these two sides and the rest of the league.

Manama again opened up a valuable lead , that at one stage stretched out to 10 points, during that period but as in the first, Muharraq did enough to keep in touch and by the half-time break trailed by only 48-49.

Unlike in some of the more recent meetings between the two sides, in which Muharraq's discipline at times let them down, last night they looked a lot calmer and in control and that went a long way to ensuring they held a 79-78 lead heading into the final quarter.

Respective coaches Charlie Parker (Muharraq) and Ricardo Daniel (Manama) could only look on as the match pushed towards an energy-sapping conclusion.

That the match maintained its shape, pace and discipline is a credit to both sides and this was a result that was always going to be a heart-breaker for the team on the wrong end of the scoreline.

In the end it was a free-throw from Darius Rice that moved Manama into a three-point lead with only one second left on the clock and, despite a couple of points from the free-throw line from Ahmed Hassan and then a last-ditch long-range effort from Bader Abdulla that came agonisingly close, Manama held on for victory.

The free-flowing game saw top scores of 33 points for Muharraq's CJ Giles and 28 for Manama's Hassan Nourooz and means the two teams will return to the same venue to battle it out all over again on Sunday evening.


(gulf-daily-news.com)

MANAMA last night gained a significant psychological advantage ahead of the Zain Bahrain Basketball Cup Final with a dramatic 82-80 victory over bitter rivals Muharraq in their final match of the Top Six round-robin stage.

The two sides will meet again in the best-of-three finals series next month but last night's result will give reigning champions Manama a great boost of confidence in the build-up.

Despite both having already secured their places in the final before last night's fixture, this was never going to be anything less than a fierce encounter between the two superpowers of the Bahraini basketball scene.

Indeed, despite what might have been an understandable urge to keep something up the sleeve for the challenges ahead, the respective coaches both made their intentions clear by sending their strongest sides onto the court for the start.

For Muharraq's Charlie Parker that meant the introduction of the evergreen and indomitable Ahmed Malalla alongside talismanic American star CJ Giles, while for Manama and Argentine coach Ricardo Daniel, there was a welcome return for the imposing Ahmed Al Mutawa.

While not quite the bearpit atmosphere of the previous encounter between these two sides earlier this month, which Manama won by 92-88, last night's battle at the Zain Bahrain Basketball Arena in Umm Al Hassam got underway in explosive fashion.

That was down mostly to a Muharraq side, who scorched out of the blocks all guns blazing to race into 10-2 lead with two and a half minutes played.

That brought about an explosion of another kind as Daniel called a time out at that point and proceeded to let rip at his players.

It seemed to do the trick however, as, within a few minutes had overturned that deficit and actually led 17-14 at one stage.

Muharraq came back into things thereafter and edged to a 24-21 first quarter win but the tone was set for an epic tussle.
Frustration

Things continued in a similar fashion in the second period, after which the Muharraq lead was down to 38-37.

The second half saw frustration filter into the Muharraq ranks once again, as occurred during recent defeats to Manama and Al Hala, and their opponents duly took advantage and control of the match in a commanding 64-51 lead.

With 10 minutes left on the clock, it looked as though Muharraq had shot themselves in the foot and Manama would go on to take the win with relative ease but they showed a determined side to them and stormed back into contention, with Giles, who scored 25 points on the night, leading the charge.

Pulling back to 80-82, Muharraq had one last throw of the dice but Darius Rice, who top-scored for his side with 24, gratefully snaffled a rebound and Manama held on for victory.

MANAMA were yesterday back on track in their bid to retain the Zain Bahrain Basketball Championship with a hard-fought 84-78 victory over Al Ahli at Zain Basketball Arena in Um Al Hassam.

In an action-packed second-week tie, Manama made amends for their disappointing start to the competition last week when they suffered a 84-89 defeat to Sitra to bounce back and revive their title chances.

American professional Darius Rice was the star of the night for Manama, scoring 29 points, guiding his side for their maiden win in the six-team tournament.

Coached by Argentina's Ricardo Daniel, Manama were also inspired by some of Bahrain's best basketball players, including skipper Mahmood Ghuloom, Mohammed Hassan, Ahmed Abdulaziz, Mohammed Hussain, Ahmed Al Mutawa, Isa Ebrahim, Jassim Mohammed and Omran Abdulreda.

Al Ahli, on the other hand, were banking on their American import Johnny Antony who was the team's top scorer with 29 points.

Playmaker Hussain Shaker, along with Maytham Jameel, Sayed Hashim Habib, Hisham Sarhan, Mohammed Qurban and Mahdi Ashoor also spearheaded Al Ahli in yesterday's thriller.

The result saw both clubs tied with three points each from two matches in the six-team tournament, with three matches remaining to mark the end of the first half of this double round robin stage.


(gulf-daily-news.com)

MANAMA Club and Isa Town last night proved there is still plenty of life left in the round-robin stage of the Zain Bahrain Basketball League, as they faced off in a pulsating battle.

After an entertaining match in which momentum ebbed and flowed for much of the second half however, it was Manama who emerged with the most hard-fought of 75-71 victories.

The result means Manama keep the pressure on league leaders Muharraq, who must still register at least one win from their remaining three games to ensure top spot.

Isa Town meanwhile, although already qualified for the play-off phase, will be buoyed by their second-half showing, if not the result, heading forward to the business end of the season, which begins next month.

Darius Rice, who top-scored with 27 on his return from injury, was to the fore however, as the wily Manama outfit soaked up the pressure before ensuring the win with a couple of well-taken late scores.


(gulf-dailynews.com)

June 13--AL HALA ended a nine-year finals drought last night as they punched their ticket to this year's Zain Bahrain Basketball League championship series with an 87-81 win over Manama.

American professional Patrick Simpson had 35 points and grabbed 14 rebounds to spearhead the victors. He scored eight in the final five minutes of the game when Hala took the lead for good en route to completing the two-game sweep of their heavily favoured rivals in their Golden Square semi-final.

Manama's Darius Rice lit up the scoreboard for 44 points, but his fine individual effort was not enough to lift his team. He was limited to a string of tightly contested shots down the stretch.

Hala will now play for the league title for the first time since 2002, when they were ousted by Manama. They will face the winner of the other final four head-to-head between Muharraq and defending champions Al Ahli, which is headed to a third and decisive game on Wednesday.


(americanchronicle.com)

DARIUS Rice torched champions Al Ahli for 51 points last night to lift Manama to a dramatic 107-101 overtime victory in the Zain Bahrain Basketball League play-offs.

Rice took command in the game's extra session, when he scored 17 of his season-high output and helped seal their resounding come-from-behind win. He took advantage of the absence of Ahli professional Lamond Murray, who had fouled out of the game late in regulation.

Rice had actually put on his hero's cape earlier in the contest, when he helped Manama rally from 10 points down, 78-68, with only two minutes left to play.

The six-foot, 10-inch American made back-to-back three-pointers to bring Manama to within four, and after Ahli court general Hussain Shaker made one of two free-throws for an 85-80 lead and 15 seconds on the clock, Rice raced down the court and buried another trey to make it 85-83 with just seven seconds remaining.

Maytham Jameel then missed a chance to ice the game for Ahli after clanging a pair of charity shots. Manama guard Bader Abdulla Malabes made him pay after being fouled with 1.6 seconds left. Malabes connected on two pressure-packed free-throws to tie it at 85-apiece and send the game into overtime, when Rice carried his team the rest of the way.

"Darius won the game for us," Malabes told the GDN. "He made some unbelievable shots near the end of the fourth quarter, and then he was unstoppable in overtime.

"Now we're almost sure of making it in the Golden Square after this win. We have three games left, and at least one more victory will put us safely in."

Ahli had a slim chance of completing their own comeback after Shaker made a trey to cut Manama's lead to 104-101, but it was too late as Rice and Malabes pegged the final score with another three charities in the closing moments.

Ahmed Mutawa added 21 points for Manama before fouling out while Malabes chipped in with 16.

The win was their second in a row in the six-team play-offs, which is being played in a single round-robin. Ahli, on the other hand, suffered their second straight defeat and are now in danger of missing the final four.

Shaker finished with 30 points to lead all Ahli scorers in the loss. Jameel added 27 and Murray had 20, before both fouled out.

Ahli led 43-40 at the half, and they even extended their advantage to 65-57 when Nedhal Abbas buried a three-pointer to beat the third quarter buzzer. That, however, set the stage for Manama's late-game surge.

Meanwhile, Al Hala picked up their first win of the play-offs following a mind-boggling 137-45 humiliation of lowly Nuwaidrat in yesterday's other game.

Veteran forward Ahmed Malallah and American big man Patrick Simpson combined for 50 points - already outscoring their rivals' entire game total by themselves.

Malallah had 26 and Simpson 24 to go with 11 rebounds and seven assists, as he took advantage of Nuwaidrat's overmatched roster and the absence of an opposing professional player.

Five others scored in double figures for Hala in the nearly 100-point victory. Abbas Jawadi contributed 17, Ahmed Jamal 15, Ahmed Haji and Abdulla Al Khaja 12 apiece and Ahmed Ali Hussain 10.

Nuwaidrat remained winless after two games.

Play-off action continues on Friday with Ahli taking on Nuwaidrat at 5.30pm, followed at 7.15pm by Manama locking horns with Isa Town.



(gulf-daily-news.com)

DARIUS Rice powered Manama to a crushing 83-64 victory over Isa Town last night in the Zain Bahrain Basketball League. Rice buried an impressive seven three-pointers en route to scoring a game-high 28 points to lead his team to the romp.

The six-foot, 10-inch big man from the US also grabbed 14 rebounds as Manama came away with their 10th win of their league campaign and moved to a tie in first place on the standings with bitter rivals Muharraq.

Point guard Ahmed Abdulaziz added 17 markers while versatile wing Bader Abdulla Malabes scored 14. Malabes also dished out six assists and committed zero turnovers.

Ahmed Al Mutawa added 13 points for Manama to go along with three blocks.

Rice was sinking baskets from all over the floor in yesterday's game, and made it look easy in the process.

After Manama took a 21-12 lead at the end of the opening quarter, Rice helped his side pull away in the second with a big triple late in the half to make it 41-23 heading into the break.

Rice continued his hot shooting in the third, connecting on another three long-range bombs in the period for a comfortable 61-33 advantage. They eventually went ahead 68-41 with just the last canto to play.

Such was Manama's dominance that even veteran forward Abdulmajeed Shahram, who was playing in his first game for the team after coming out of a one-and-a-half-year retirement, scored from beyond the arc.

Shahram put Manama 33 points in front with his basket, 81-48. It was their biggest lead of the night, and his shot drew the loudest cheers from the sparse crowd that was in attendance at Zain Basketball Arena in Um Al Hassam.

Isa Town managed to close the gap during garbage time with solid play from American professional Jamal Holden, and Bahraini talents Hassan Ramadan and Ali Traif.

Holden finished the game with a team-best 23 points and eight rebounds, but he was their lone player in double figures. Ramadan contributed nine points while Traif had eight.

Isa Town suffered their seventh loss after 12 games, but are still in contention for a berth in the six-team play-off round.

No league games are scheduled for tonight, but action resumes tomorrow with Muharraq taking on Al Ettihad at 5.30pm, followed by defending champions Al Ahli locking horns with Al Hala at 7.15pm.



(gulf-daily-news.com)

MANAMA were last night crowned champions of this year's Zain Bahrain Basketball Cup. The victors romped to a 105-81 victory over bitter rivals Al Ahli to emphatically sweep their best-of-three championship series in two games and win back the crown.

American professional Darius Rice (208-F-82, college: Miami (FL)) led the way for Manama. The six-foot, 10-inch centre poured in a game-high 35 points while pulling down 13 rebounds. Point Guard Ahmed Abdulaziz chipped in with 20, while All star trio Mohammed Hassan, Mahmood Ghuloom and Ahmed Al Mutawa (199-F/C-81, agency: Low Country Sports, college: Broward CC) had nine points apiece. Also Al mutawa had 12 rebounds and 7 assists.

Coach Jason Rabedeaux (agency: Edge Sports ) in just a short time transformed Manama into a dominant powerhouse giving players direction and confidence, Manama were on fire from beyond the arc, burying 13 three-pointers in the game. Rice alone had six. With the win, Manama came away with their third Cup triumph in the last four years. They lost last year's title to Muharraq, but before that won it two seasons in a row. They have now claimed the annual competition a record 14 times overall.

'This is like a dream!' Al Mutawa told the press. The team's inspirational and defensive leader added: 'We worked hard for this, but it's not over yet; we are now going to fight for the league Championship' After playing most of his younger years with Manama, Al Mutawa moved on to greener pastures in Kuwait for a few years before finally returning to his old club this season. 'This is why I came back,' Al Mutawa said while pointing to the thousands of jubilant Manama supporters who flocked to Zain Basketball Arena in support of their club.

With Ahli playing without influential court general Hussain Shaker, Manama were in control of the game from the opening tip. They led 27-16 at the end of the first quarter, and then in the second, blew the game wide open and took a 59-33 lead into the half. Guard Bader Abdulla Malabes came off the bench to help spark Manama into extending their lead. Malabes hit two successive triples that made it 48-30, and they never looked back. Manama eventually led by as many as 40 points in the third quarter before cruising the rest of the way. Added Rice, who only joined Manama mid-season: 'My teammates have really made me feel like a part of the family since I've arrived. I'm glad to have helped Manama win this title.' Of his stellar offensive display, Rice said: 'I love championship games. They bring out the best in me.'

Maytham Jameel top scored for Ahli with 30 points in the loss. Import Marquin Chandler (202-F-82, college: San Jose St.) from the US scored 23 before fouling out. Both teams were awarded their respective trophies and medals by Bahrain Olympic Committee chief executive Shaikh Khalid bin Abdulla Al Khalifa in the presence of Bahrain Basketball Association officials.



(asia-basket.com)

MANAMA remained unbeaten in the main round of the Zain Bahrain Basketball Cup following a 99-71 victory over Sitra at Zain Basketball Arena in Um Al Hassam. New American import Darius Rice guided the victors last night with an impressive 40 points, including six three-pointers, which proved decisive.

It was the third successive win in as many games for Manama who stayed on course for reaching the best-of-three final.

Manama headed into the game needing victory to move a step closer towards securing one of the top two spots in the main round and a berth in the best-of-three finals.

Under their recently-appointed coach John Rabidou of the US, Manama were indeed on fire as they dominated the game right from the start, taking a 7-0 lead in the early stages of the first quarter, which ended in their favour 29-12.

Sitra showed composure in the second quarter and cut Manama's lead by six points and were trailing 38-49 at the interval.

But Manama maintained their momentum in the third quarter and, with a combination of solid defence and accurate finishing, extended their advantage to 74-61.

There was little that Sitra could do in the fourth and final quarter, which was ruled by their opponents who stretched the lead to 28 points for an enormous victory.

The victory helped Manama move up two points clear in the table with six points. They are ahead of defending champions Muharraq, who are also unbeaten after two matches.

National team trio of Mahmood Ghuloom, Ahmed Al Mutawa and Mohammed Hassan were the stars for the victors, scoring crucial points in the closing stages of the game.

Sitra, who suffered their second defeat in three games, watched their bid to regain the only title they had won four years ago go up in smoke.
The team in red jerseys were relying on their American professional Williard Crews who managed 22 points.

Meanwhile, cup action continues today with two matches in the third week, commencing at 6pm when bottom club Isa Town seek their maiden win against third-placed Al Ahli.

That will be followed by what promises to be an interesting encounter between Muharraq and Al Hala at 7.45pm.

Meanwhile, the Bahrain Basketball Association (BBA) has fined Manama Club BD1,000 and also banned the team's supporters from attending the club's next matches against Al Hala.

The decision, made due to Manama fans' riot during their cup game against Al Hala last Saturday, was announced during the BBA's meeting, chaired by president and Parliament Member Adel Al Assomi.



(gulf-daily-news.com)