Muslim Basketball

An interesting game of runs for Haifa who got off to an early lead and then went down before retaking it late in the game. They look at their best when they swing the ball around to find Adam and Raj before the defense sets up. However, a 3 point heavy shot selection and struggle to defend picks and post ups gave Baysan room to operate. They need to iron out the defense if they want to battle through cold shooting stretches come playoff time.

The start of the rankings shakeup. Looks like Swish will be here moving forward and he had an excellent game, hitting 5 threes for 19 total points. Mahdy missed a lot of his usual shots but responded very well by attacking and finding teammates. Moatze also continued a strong season, chipping in 10 points. Early season wins against Safad and Nazareth are looking better now as well.

When you see Fursan and Islam lacing up, get ready for a long night. Safad locked up early to get a big lead and never looked back. They’ve quietly dominated from tipoff to final whistle for 3 straight games now. The offense is slowly catching up, too, as they hit a season high 12 threes with 2+ from 5 different players. They’ll look to keep on rolling to close the season.

They can’t do anything but play what’s in front of them, but Areeha got out to a quick 20 point lead against 4 players before the fifth showed up. Jay Mustafa continues to look in complete control at all times and the defense did a great job taking away the biggest threats. Their best win against Tulkarem is losing some shine, as is the loss against Tiberias. However, this is still a top contender in the league.

One of the biggest sliders of the week. The defense got worked around the rim in man and zone. The offense was running into walls without their wide open outlet passes and the zone forced them to put up lots of 3s. They’re still a top team but they are rightfully held to a high standard. Next week vs Areeha will be their chance to get their first win against a top 7 ranked team.

Statement game from Nazareth to put them on the league's radar. Excellent discipline in transition. Luis dominated down low and from 3, forcing them into a zone quickly. Khaled had great finishing around the rim, and is shooting 48% on the season. Muhammad was great in penetrating an aggressive zone by Bethlehem. Larry crushed Bethlehem’s souls on the glass. Exciting matchup vs Haifa next week.

This is still a very good team but other teams’ momentum are dropping Rafah a few spots. Obviously, they missed Joey and Nabil this week but they still had their top 3 scorers. Another game with only 5 threes. And while the assists stats can be shaky, it feels reflected watching them play. Their early season signature wins are losing some weight but they’ll have more chances to come.

Strong mentality from Al-Bireh to come back and win this game that they know they should win. Good to see Shafic back in the fold. 19 points on 8-10 from Kevin, who’s strong performances have correlated to wins for Al-Bireh. Using him in threatening scoring positions instead of just moving the ball around will help unlock the offensive ceiling for Al-Bireh that we know exists but have yet to see.

When Tulkarem is able to play their game, they look dominant. Moayad and Anas were running ahead of the defense regularly and Mana was cleaning up on the glass as the defense collapsed on the drive. Defense will continue to be this team’s calling card, as they held Ian Felix to 6-23. If this is their top gear offensively, they’ll need to figure out ways to get into this type of pace more regularly.

Jenin is building momentum at a good time. Winning on an inefficient shooting night from Akrum is a good sign. Wajdi is a force and his combination of strength and burst will foul out many more players. Another 3pt flurry for Zubair with 5 threes, which will be huge in making defenses pay for overhelping. They have a winnable next couple games but only if they continue to play at this level.

After a few weeks high up the PR, Tiberias has tumbled back down. Their signature win vs Areeha still holds strong but it seems like their peak is unsustainable and a product of being an all or nothing type offense. They put up another 37 threes this week but only converted 22%. They’ve shown in past seasons that it can win them consecutive games but not with the defense playing like this, among the league leaders in fouls.

A frustrating season continues to pile on for Jerusalem and they didn’t even give themselves a chance here. Started the game with 4 players and quickly fell into a 20 point deficit. They’re running out of time to build any sort of identity throughout the season but you can’t count them out of any game with all the talent on the roster.

Great game against one of the league’s best for Baysan but ultimately they fell short. Even when they couldn’t break down the defense off the dribble, they did a good job using picks and entry passes to get in the paint. John had a great game in the post and was giving Haifa lots of problems with his size and shooting. If they clean up a few things they can get that extra boost to close some of these games off.

More of the same for Gaza. They come out the gates with intensity but lose steam as the game goes on and when things don’t go their way. Ironically, the defense needs to retreat a little more as teams continue to skip by them on the perimeter and in transition where they are pressed up and lunging. The wide open shootout games they get into don’t seem to play in their favor.

Credit to Yazur for keeping it close for the majority of the game. Marawan made it difficult for Al-Khalil to finish at the rim and Abdulrafay went off again as a starter. The effectiveness of their zone defense seems slightly misleading as many plays Al-Khalil had options between 2 wide open shooters but missed. They might need to shift away from the long dribble drives they’re struggling to convert.

Good effort by Yaffa, leading early on and keeping it close for a long time against a very solid Al-Bireh team. Although they picked up a lot of fouls, it’s great to see the team play with such high intensity no matter what. Building off last game, they got good contributions from Jojo, Hossam and Malik plus another 9 from Derek. They’re getting close to finding the winning formula but it will continue to be an uphill battle this season.