Muslim Basketball

Unlike Sarajevo, Bukhara did what they were supposed to do when they play a bottom-ranked team, they won by 33. Their “Big 3” (Ahmed, Mustafa, Matt) shot a combined 35-53 (66%) from the field! That kind of efficiency will get you a win every single time. This team will make it further than their seed shows.

Tough game for Bukhara, as they had to face a fully loaded Granada squad. The main reason they lost was because of their inability to hit free throws. They shot a terrible 1-10 (10%) from the line, while Granada shot 11-14 (78.6%). They now rank 24th out of 28 teams in FT shooting, at just 52.7% for the season. 2-15 from 2 doesn’t help either. They’ll bounce back with a win next week against Delhi, unless Delhi has two upsets in a row up their sleeves!

This wasn’t necessarily their best game, but a win is a win. Mustafa shot an abysmal 3-16, while Ahmed wasn’t much better shooting 7-22. As a team, Bukhara shot 29.7% from the floor. They still won by 14 points, so that shows how bad Medina was. This is now two games in a row Bukhara had 7 players show up. If they keep this going, look for them to have a deep run in the playoffs.

Is that a FULL team I see for Bukhara? 7 people? What is the occasion? As I fully expect when Bukhara actually shows up, they are a force to be reckoned with. Matthew Cancel definitely helps out this team significantly, adding another big next to Big O. Look for this team to be dominant for the rest of the season and going into the playoffs.

6 games in and this is just the 2nd game Bukhara had more than 5 guys show up. When they have a team, they are a top 5 team in MB. Mustafa destroyed Kazan, dropping 31-5-3-4 on 11-16 shooting. New addition Matthew Cancel has now made an already great team elite. When was the roster change cutoff again?

Like I said last week, without a team, it is hard to win games. Even with Matt, late addition to the roster, scoring 36 points and 12 boards, they came up short. The fact that they were so close to beating Jakarta with 4 guys is impressive. If Bukhara had 6 guys at each game this season there is a chance they could be undefeated. This is a very good team, and I refuse to drop them into the bottom quadrant of the power rankings where Big O wants them to be.

Other than Elfayoumi, nobody could find their shot. The rest of the team shot an underwhelming total of 11-53, which equals 20.7% from the field. Yikes. They can’t beat the reigning champs shooting like that. Call it good defense, call it bad shooting; I just call it an L. Attendance has been killing Bukhara this season. I know it is summertime, but without a team, it is hard to win games.

Will they ever have more than 5 players?! If they had a full team they maybe could’ve made the big game against Amman more competitive. Moose and team did all they could. If Tripoli has their full squad, they aren’t the next team you want to play after a loss.

Bukhara only had 5 guys again, this time replacing K Rod with Elfayoumi. They had the same outcome, but this one was a lot closer. I still believe with all the players present this team will be dominant. They’re going to need everyone next week for the GOTW. 

A shorthanded Bukhara took care of business against a very young Palermo squad. Kenny is a very early contender for ROTY, putting up an impressive 20 points and 8 boards on 60% shooting. Big O with a monstrous 16 boards. When Ahmed is there, this team is going to be very difficult to beat.

Mustafa is back and adds both Big O and Ahmed Elfayoumi. This team will be solid, but can they keep up with all the new young teams in the league?