Muslim Basketball

No surprises here, but boy did Akka give them a run for their money. Yazur walked into the gym smiling as if this game was going to be a blowout, but by halftime the whole team was sweating and you could hear Taka yelling at his team from outside. Clearly that was enough to light the fire under them, as they turned on the jets in the 2nd half and forced turnover after turnover which resulted in an enormous amount of fast break points. Taka led the way with 19 pts, 4 reb, 6 ast, and 6 stl (!!) and Alassane was right behind him with a solid 19 and 7. Proving to still be the championship favorites, this is a team to be reckoned with. 

Side note, maybe skip the layup lines and practice some shooting, because 7% from beyond the arc is, well... not pretty.

Starting the season off cold, Rafah has really turned it around and have won their last 3 games. While everyone thought their matchup with Khan Yunis would be a close one, Rafah came out hot from the start and made a statement with a 16 point victory. The father-son duo of Sami and Kareem Shaban is an exciting one, with Sami giving us sightings of prime Dennis Rodman with 13 boards and Kareem thinking he's on his Trae Young villain arc. Seriously Kareem, the guys on the sideline were cheering for you. Maybe wave goodbye to the opposition next time?

They have gone from 8th in the power rankings to 2nd. They're eyeing that 1st spot with their Yazur matchup in 2 weeks. Yes Kareem, we'll all be rooting for you that game.

One of the most skilled teams in the league, we all know Khan Yunis is disappointed in their 16 point loss to Rafah. Granted, they had half an Umar Khattak and Jazib as both are dealing with injuries, and no Shaharia either. Even then, 24% from the field won't cut it against the top teams in the league. Hopefully they come at full strength (and roster, please for once) against the best team in the league next week. With so many talented pieces, the self proclaimed "walking turnover" Umar Khattak will have to put his coaching hat on and lead them to the promised land.

Starting the game with 4 players obviously wasn't too much of a problem for Tulkarem as they still managed to come out with a W against a pesky Ajjur team. Talha and Aaron came to ball with both pouring in a solid 17 and 16 pts respectively. This team is as unselfish as they come, as you'll see all 5 guys touch the ball almost every time down the court. No wonder they lead the league in Assists Per Game.

Can we please start running the Subhan-Aaron pick and roll? We'd like to see some primetime CP3 and Blake Griffin action around here.

Looks like Ayman and Salim almost have their internal power struggles figured out, as we didn't see as many arguments between them on the court (doesn't mean there weren't any...). Salim led the way with 17 and 5 on 58% shooting, and Ayman made his presence felt on the boards with 13.

They need a team bonding session or something, because the displays of frustration from multiple members of the team is apparent every game. Definitely a wrinkle they need to iron out come playoff time.

With this team almost squeezing out the win in OT, it looks like the only thing they were missing was Sheikh Karim and his duas. Ali Azzat was a bright spot for this team, giving Pat Bev vibes with his insane hustle on both ends of the court.

Locking down the tower Ayman from Bir Seba'a is not an easy task, but Al-Balah did so limiting him to only 7 points. Unfortunately this wasn't enough to come out with the win. With 3 straight losses, hopefully they figure it out by next week as they are going up against an Akka team desperate for their first win.

Mannnnn Akka really took us on a roller coaster ride in their game against the undefeated Yazur. Coming out scorching hot in the first half, their first win was finally within sight. They came out and went blow for blow in the beginning of the second half, but unfortunately, as all good things have to come to an end, so did their lead. The drop to the bottom was a fast one, as their 8-point lead quickly turned into a 20-point deficit. Omar Khan led the way with 21 points and Usman Khan had his best game of the season with 17 and 9.

They desperately need to figure out their turnover woes, because 20 turnovers just won't cut it. If 2 players are combining for 14 turnovers, they need to learn to trust the rest of the team to take the pressure off them. Coach Ibraheem needs to step up (wait sorry, you can sit) and lead them to their first win.