Another Monday, another predictions post! Exciting week 6 on our hands, that makes for a tough set of predictions. Nonetheless, here, we, go!


7:30 PM Slate

Lahore (Black) @ Jerusalem (White):
At last, this long-awaited matchup is finally at hand. Given the hype, this is my Game of the Week. Let's ignore the hype and break this down though. Jerusalem is a team that looks to win their games defensively before anything else, and their main scorers have been predominantly lil o and Omar Mana. Lahore has a pretty obvious big 3 that does almost everything in Shahzaib, Aadil, and Affan. What makes Lahore so formidable is their versatility on offense. Aadil and Affan will do the most to push the pace and catch defenders sleeping, while Shahzaib is your "get me a bucket" guy; he'll hit a shot with a hand in his face. Beyond that, Lahore has also presented themselves to be a defensively capable squad. Now that the blueprint is laid out, let's do the math. Jerusalem has the perfect-sized personnel to slow down the Lahore big 3, but any inconsistencies offensively can prove fatal. Lahore on the hand does not have the perfect-sized personnel to deal with the likes of Mana especially, and too much effort spent trying to slow him down can be fatal to them. To me, it seems the ball is in Jerusalem's court, and especially with a hot Billal on the loose, I'm liking their odds right now.
Jerusalem by 7.

Tripoli (Black) @ Mecca (White):
Both of these teams are coming off stellar performances, and seem to be on a mission to prove something. The personnel matchup is very fair, and all these factors together make for a great game. So what gives? I believe it will be efficiency that's the key factor. Mecca hasn't been ultra-efficient given Yaqob shoots whatever shot he wants half the time, but generally speaking, players like MJ, Ameer, and Yaqob are all capable scorers who have proven to score efficiently. Tripoli has been pretty inefficient in their last couple of games, and specifically in a high-scoring game vs Medina, you'd expect they'd had a very easy time. Well, they did, but I think we all expected a little better. The next point is Mecca also proved last week they're capable of playing some tough defense, and now match low efficiency with playing against a tough defense, there are ingredients for disaster. As always, Tripoli has the talent to contend for it all, but I'm riding with the team that just upset what was the #1 seed.
Mecca by 3.

Delhi (Black) @ Palermo (White):
An odd matchup we have here, inversely to the last prediction, two teams coming off poor performances clash. Thankfully, that still makes for a good matchup. It's obvious both these teams have yet to find their groove, and a big part of that is missing players, and I'm going to assume both teams show up with their full squads. Palermo has spurts of greatness, but they fall apart quickly, and it's a bit confusing because they have a ton of talent. Delhi fight until the end, and almost tortures their opponent every step of the way. I think that's the reason they'll win, Palermo can cave very quickly, and Delhi would be the team to instigate that more than any other. Another factor in this one will be what’s now the exposed defense of Delhi, I’m not sure if it’s laziness or something else, but that’s certainly something Palermo can and will take advantage of. This may be a much closer game than people may expect, and I’m expecting Deeb to come out huge in this one.
Delhi by 2.


8:30 PM Slate

Jeddah (Black) @ Islamabad (White):
I know Jeddah was missing Sohaib last week, but that performance was quite disappointing to say the least. Islamabad is the team to beat, and they’ve shown no signs of pressing the brakes. The matchup is an easy one for Islamabad, Hassan’s coming off a 26 pt game and making a late push for that MVP spot he felt he deserved last season. I think that type of stat line persists, Sohaib will have to come out strong and aggressive to limit Hassan at all. Mo Amin, Jehad, Haseeb, and Tabty will have to show some of that life they had vs Jerusalem to stand a chance, but to be honest, there may not be a team that can stop the likes of Hassan, Zain, Kareem and the rest of the boys when healthy.
Islamabad by 16.

Medina (Black) @ Riyadh (White):
Ohhhhhhh the matchup is looking quite enticing for Medina this week, will they make the most of it? Riyadh has had a tough time hitting their shots from the great beyond, and that’s the perfect matchup for a giant slow moving Medina squad to defend well. By no means am I counting Riyadh out, Nader and his boys are much, much, much, much…lol jk, but they are younger than this Medina squad. They’ll do their best to keep Medina on their toes. I don’t believe Riyadh will try to switch things up and start chucking up 3’s; they’ll stick to what they’re good at, and remain competitive. Medina does have the right guys to matchup with Nader, and they do have enough firepower to give them an advantage. To be frank, Medina simply does have the advantage in terms of personnel, but their abysmal performances goes to show that personnel matchups aren’t everything. Riyadh will see these predictions and come to play, but for the sake of an upset and for the sake of our commissioners, you know who I got.
Medina by 4.

Damascus (Black) @ Cairo (White):
Cairo thought it was appropriate to go on vacation amidst a 1-4 season. They were struggling before their vacation, and all that vacation would’ve done is make their struggles worsen. Damascus got a major W last week, and they feel on top of the world right now. I’m hearing they’re coming for the crown, and I’m excited to see their enthusiasm translate. They’’ look to get everyone involved in what should be a plus matchup for them, or maybe Omar Hussein takes his own shot at the MVP title?
Damascus by 23.

9:30 PM Slate

Alexandria (Black) @ Kabul (White):
I was hoping I can have an easy time at the end of these predictions, but these two had to come and ruin things. Jokes aside, Game of the Week runner up, though Kabul did disappoint last week, regardless of missing Tom. That’ll be the story though, Kabul has proven that when they’re in full attendance, that Farhad/Tom duo is essentially impossible to stop. Though that may be true, the same can and will be said about the Musa, Jay, and Wajdi trio, and you know a trio is better than a duo. Furthermore, the efficiency Alexandria has hit at is quite frightening, and quite frankly overpowered. In all honesty though, Farhad is going to be the key factor, if he manages to slow down either Wajdi or Musa, Kabul has a real shot. Defense overall for this Kabul squad will be their deciding factor; if they come to play, Alexandria can be in for a long night, and Alexandria’s closest games came when Jay or Moose were limited. The ball is definitely in Alexandria’s court though, if they can shrug off whatever’s thrown at them, they’ll be fine. I do have to mention I’m rooting for Kabul and the upset though, and I’m looking at Chris and Allen to step up on defense.
Alexandria by 5.

Mombasa (Black) @ Granada (White):
Ahhh there it is, thank you Granada lol. Beyond the fact that I predict Mombasa will win, let me mention one thing about Mombasa. Elias, I’m still waiting… Granada’s offense is pretty stagnant, and I though my call outs last week would’ve done the trick, but, I’ve been let down. If this team wants to be competitive, they have to find a way to get everyone involved and they got to start hitting easy baskets. As far as I can tell, it seems there’s a lack of trust from player to player in terms of their capabilities, but if they all recognize what their roles on the team should be, they should be able to figure things out. A lack of offense means a lack of defense and vice versa, all I can do now is pray.
Mombasa by 31.