Doha, Qatar: After losing opener, Al Rayyan bounced back at the Amir Cup basketball tournament as they rallied to beat Al Arabi 91-79 in an exciting Group 2 match at Al Gharafa Sports Club yesterday.

In other match, Al Wakrah continued their fine run in the tournament to claim second straight victory, beating Qatar SC 89-81 to stay on top in Group B with four points.

Malik Romero Curry played key role for Al Rayyan as the Qatar Basketball League champions made turnaround in the final period after trailing 54-59 in the penultimate stage of the match.

Al Rayyan's Meho Haracic prepares to shoot.

Curry scored 26 points and had seven rebounds and four assists in the match. He was well aided by Mouhammad Faye and Tahjon Komar Starks with both scoring 23 points apiece. Faye also registered 18 rebounds in the match.

Al Rayyan, who lost their opening match against Al Wakrah, started the match on a bright note, taking 23-15 lead after the first period before Al Arabi staged a fightback in the following session to snatch 40-35 lead. Kelechi Austin Ajukwa, who earned 27 points, was the leading performer while Charles Phillip Hinkle (16 points), Mohammed Harat (12) and Khaled Roushdy Abdelbaset (11) were the other main contributors for Al Arabi.

Al Rayyan are second in Group 2 standing with three points ahead of Al Arabi while Qatar SC are on the bottom after losing both their matches.

Al Arabi will meet Al Wakrah while Al Rayyan will take on Qatar SC in their next group matches on June 8. Top two teams from each group will advance to the semi-finals to be played on June 12.

Meanwhile, Brandon Lloyd Spearman fired 22 points while Erfan Ali Saeed and Julius V Coles Jr scored 18 points to help Al Wakrah earn a dominant win over Qatar SC. They led 26-18 in the first period and entered the final period with a 66-54 lead. Brian Re Karion Halums scored 27 points for Qatar SC with Dejan Janjic chipping in with 18 points.

Action at the Amir Cup will resume tomorrow with Group 1 matches as Al Ahli are scheduled to play Al Khor while defending champions Al Sadd will face Al Gharafa.

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