02 June 2006
Dubai: Antranik successfully kept the Arab title in Lebanon with a 76-59 win against Al Wahda in the final of the 13th Women's Arab Clubs Basketball Championship at Al Ahli Club last night.
Sagesse of Lebanon was the defending champion when this competition was last held five years ago.
"We were here to defend the title for Lebanon and we did so in style," said Antranik coach Shafiq Akiki.
After the final, Prince Talal Bin Badr Bin Saud Bin Abdul Aziz, President of the Arab Basketball Federation, gave away the trophies along with Ali Mohammad Ali, Vice-President of UAE Basketball Association.
Both finalists knew that much depended on the performance of the home-grown players, given the fact that the two foreign players each in their ranks would cancel out each other.
The four pros did not disappoint as Agga Joblonska and Jurgita Kausate were in the forefront for the Syrians, even as Melshika Bowman and Adeola Olanrewaju excelled for the defending champions from Lebanon.
After lagging behind for a better part of the opening quarter, Antranik held on to a slender 25-21 lead with Bowman topscoring with 12 points and Olanrewaju coming in handy under the basket with six points.
Al Wahda, on the other hand, relied mostly on the scoring ability of Lithuanian pro Kausate, who outscored her teammates with 10 points.
In the second quarter, two early triples from Shada Nasr and Nayla Eldine distanced the Lebanese to a comfortable two-digit lead. And despite Kausate continuing to impress for Al Wahda with her accuracy for another six points, Antranik left for the halftime with an 11-point lead at 42-31.
Midway through the third quarter, Antranik showed why they are the Arab champions as they accelerated their scoring. And though Jablonska and Kausate waged a gritty battle both in offence and defence, the Lebanese were 63-44 ahead to be in the clear by 19 points at the end of the quarter.
The Lebanese played out the final quarter, slowing down the game every time the Syrians sought to raise the tempo.
Playing for the first time, Al Wahda were not overawed by the situation. "We are happy we gave a good account of ourselves by reaching the final," stated coach Ahmad Helfawi.
Third place play-off: Olympic, Algeria bt Sporting, Egypt 85-69.
Final: Antranik, Lebanon bt Al Wahda, Syria, 76-59.
By Alaric Gomes
Gulf News 2006. All rights reserved.
