Oman fall to Bahrain in Gulf basketball qualifiers

Bahrain beat Oman 123-45 in the Gulf Youth Championship Under-18 qualifiers for the Asian Cup at Kuwaiti Basketball Association Hall in Sheikh Saad Al Abdullah al Sabah Complex.

Oman national team did not perform as expected and suffered greatly in both offense and defense throughout the four periods. On the other hand, Bahrain capitalised on many mistakes to widen the gap in the four periods and advance comfortably, especially after the second quarter of the game. National team coach Zouheir al Ayashi could not rectify the mistakes leading to a loss.

The first quarter ended with a score of 30-16 in favor of the Bahrain team. The Bahrain team started the game strongly and imposed its control from the beginning, while the Omanis tried to keep up with the speed and quick attacks of the opponent but to no avail.

The second quarter ended with a score of 31-15 in favor of Bahrain, whose dominance continued, exploiting the defensive mistakes of the Omanis to widen the gap. Despite Oman's attempts to improve performance, the gap continued to widen.

The third quarter ended with a score of 28-8 in favor of Bahrain. This quarter saw clear superiority for Bahrain, as they managed to execute quick counterattacks and score points easily, while the Omani team struggled with weak offensive and defensive performance.

The fourth quarter ended with a score of 34-6 in favor of Bahrain. Bahrain ensured victory with a large margin, while Oman continued to struggle in scoring points and defending their basket.

In this game, the scoring rate for the national team players decreased, with player Abdulrahman al Maamari scoring 15 points, while the rest of the team shared the remaining points.

In the second match, Qatar defeated Saudi Arabia 86-76. The first quarter of the match was exciting for both sides. Qatar managed to advance with a good margin. In the second quarter, the Qatari team managed to secure it by a 10-point difference, achieving its second victory out of two matches and becoming one of the top contenders for the first qualification spot for the continental championship.

Oman will face Kuwait on Friday.