Al Sadd's J’von Joseph Mc Cormick (right) dribbles to the basket.
Doha: Al Sadd secured a berth in the semi-final round of the Qatar Basketball Federation’s men’s League with a dominant 106-74 win over Qatar Sports Club, placing themselves in the second spot in the standings yesterday.
With action reaching the final round of the League, Al Rayyan sit comfortably at the top with 30 points, while Al Sadd raised their tally to 27 with yesterday’s win.
Qatar SC, meanwhile, finished with 20 points after suffering their 12th loss of the League.
In yesterday’s fast-paced game, Al Sadd had the edge over Qatar SC in a closely contested first quarter which ended 26-25.
Al Sadd tightened the grip in the second quarter, adding 28 more points against Qatar SC’s 13, and went on to extend the lead in the third quarter with another dominant scoring spree of 21-15.
Qatar SC tried hard in the last quarter, but Al Sadd were too good, enjoying a 31-21 score to finish the game on a high.
J’von Joseph Mc Cormick emerged as the Most Valuable Player for Al Sadd scoring 29 points with eight rebounds and eight assists, while Grant Michael Dressler also supported, registering a triple-double with 19 points, 12 rebounds, and 12 assists.
Ndoye Seydou chipped in 14 points while making five rebounds and two assists, while Babacar Dieng scored 15 points and made three rebounds.
For Qatar SC, Dejan Janjic excelled scoring 35 points and making 13 rebounds, but he did not receive enough support from his teammates except from Alioune Sy Ndoye who added 14 points and made nine rebounds.
Jacey Kleon Cruz and Asem Walid Shalfawi combined for 18 points.
Following the decisive round, the top-placed team will take on the fourth placed, and the second-placed side will meet the team finishing third, in the semis scheduled for March 17.
