Assalamualaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh,

As always, we start this post by remembering why we are playing this season. It is important to realize that there are Muslims around the world who are suffering and need our help. Just recently, there were more bombings in the “safe zone” of Rafah. The world has turned its back on our brothers and sisters in Gaza, and we cannot do the same. Every dollar donated to the cause is a huge help and it shows your support. Boycotting Israeli brands, signing petitions to congress, attending protests and raising awareness are all ways we can help without spending any money. Of course, the best way to help is by making Dua, as Allah is the All-Powerful and we need him more than ever.

Link is below to donate:



https://pcrf1.app.neoncrm.com/MB24


It’s crazy how quickly this season has flown by, and I’m shocked to say that we will be playing in the Quarter Finals next week. Congratulations to everyone who made it on to the next round, it was definitely well earned. I want to start off by saying thank you to all the teams who competed last week, the energy was insane. Also, everyone on the sideline from other teams who were spectating also created a great space for competition. I look forward to the excitement that this week will bring.

From now on, I will be posting the predictions as well as results for playoffs:

Crystal Ball: (6-2)

Hassan: (6-2)

Omar: (6-2)

Towfeek:(5-3)

Predictions for this week:

Towfeek: Al-Bireh, Ramla, Gaza, Al-Quds

Hassan: Al-Bireh, Nablus, Bethlehem, Sabra

Omar: Al-Bireh, Ramla, Bethlehem, Al-Quds


Looking into the Crystal Ball….


Qalqilya - Al-Bireh:

Wow, just want to say congratulations to Qalqilya for pulling out with a win last week. They went up against an extremely tough first round matchup and live to see another day. It’s crazy that one of those teams are gone, but props to Qalqilya for staying poised and prepared for the situation. Al-Bireh was challenged a bit last week by Jenin and that was mostly due to a slow start by the Al-Bireh crew. If they replicate that this week, they may find themselves in too big of a hole to come out.

With that being said, Al-Bireh definitely knows who they are playing up against and this is their chance to see how much they’ve been able to improve throughout the season, as this was their Week 1 matchup. They have definitely meshed as the season has gone on and they will need all hands on deck to pull out the win. Shafic will have to be aggressive and make sure he stays in the game with Habi hounding him. Towfeek must provide enough help to Shafic and Amir Hassan and Ameer Koyas have to be threats in the offense. Also Mo Alzubidi must have a breakout game. I think this is the week they bring it all together.

Al-Bireh by 6

Ramla - Nablus:

So Nablus needed every single point and more to get the job done last week in a 2 OT classic that saw to 40 point performances. It was required that others showed up for this Nablus side, and it looks like they did just enough to scrape by. Moving forward, this must be a consistent occurrence for these guys, because Ty Jackson will surely face defenses who understand that he is the focal point of the offense and will make it their mission to stop him from beating them.

I imagine that is how the Ramla squad will go into this game, as Ahmed Saleh always does a great job in getting his guys prepared. Shahzaib will have to be great and lead this team as the primary ball handler and scorer opposing Ty Jackson. He will definitely get help starting with Omar Mana and Hassan Farhat, who have good matchups going into this game. I think Ramla is the deeper squad but Nablus definitely has the firepower to upset them. We’ll see if the Ty Jackson show continues.

Ramla by 7

Gaza - Bethlehem:

Really interesting matchup here as the #1 seed made things much closer than we expected last week. I can’t really say why they had such a difficult time last week but I think they will have to get great statlines out of Hassan and Mahdy to get through the rest of the way. As good as these guys play together, it is clear that there is some inexperience on the offensive side of the ball.

Gaza has more weapons than Bethlehem and they have two masterminds to lead the way. They will definitely come into this game prepared and with a game plan to break through the Bethlehem defense and energy. I think they will be able to give the Bethlehem defense trouble and force Bethlehem to score with them.

Gaza by 5

Al-Quds - Sabra:

In my opinion, this is the game of the week. I look at these two teams as two squads that are favorites to be playing in the finals. They both have the most size in the league. Sabra runs everything through this, while Al-Quds uses their size as a defensive anchor. Al-Quds has the guard play advantage in this matchup and they may have the best guard combo in the league. Additionally, they are 3 players who can play without the ball and do other things to make their mark on the court. The 3 of them will have to carry the load offensively and put enough pressure to break Sabra out of their zone. If Al-Quds can put the bigs of Sabra in bad situations, it will make things very difficult and could give Al-Quds the edge.

This is one you don’t want to miss

Al-Quds by 2

As always,

This ain’t Lavar Ball, this ain’t Lonzo Ball, this is the Crystal Ball