Muslim Basketball

Best win: Clinic vs Al-Bireh. Khalid gave them some issues early but Rafah showed that they have firepower of their own as Zain and Anas Zubi went to work on their matchups from all 3 levels. Those 2 together with Anas Najib have been scoring efficiently all year, which makes it difficult to keep them this low. However, Nabil and Joey have not seamlessly rounded out the starting 5 as expected and the bench contributions have been limited.

This game felt over very quickly as Rafah jumped to a huge lead in minutes as they piled up points in transition. It was great to see Joey looking especially sharp, both shooting and finding teammates. The ball was moving very well and the 3s were falling, two concerns for a lot of the season. This team could easily be ranked higher. They have a chance to add their best win of the season vs Bethlehem.

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.

Anas “Anas Zubi” Zubi. Shot of the season so far from 4 point range to send it to OT moments after he was told he can only hit FTs. It seems like he’s hitting one of these every season now. Big comeback win in 2OT for Rafah against a strong defensive team. Shoutout Nabil who had a gigantic 3 and game sealing block, and Ali Alamrany helping close it out with a layup and crucial steal.

There were flashes of brilliance on both ends for Rafah, especially the run that erased a huge early deficit by half. With this team build, you need more consistency from the offense. Nabil is at his best playing at full speed but shooting 6-17 and Anas Najib missing some open threes hurt. No Zain but lots of teams missed players. Next man up.

Convincing win from start to finish for Rafah against an undermanned Tulkarem. They were already winning games and now continue to add new dimensions to the offense. Joey was heavily involved with a team high 5 assists. Double digit threes for the first time this season led by Anas Zubi with 4.

Zain is looking like a monster in the paint early on, battling with Khalid in one of the most entertaining matchups so far this season. Anas added in a calm 29, keeping Al-Bireh at a distance while they mounted a comeback late. They’ve done this while being last in the league in 3PM which will change very soon.

They put together a gritty offensive performance behind strong scoring from Anas Najib (16 points on 7-for-8 shooting) and Zain Abdeen, who added 17 points with energy on both ends. Despite shooting just 14% from three, they battled hard on the glass with 36 rebounds and found scoring from multiple players. Missed free throws and cold outside shooting limited their ceiling, but their interior scoring kept them competitive.