Mahram-Iran retains FIBA ASIA Champions Cup title in style

DOHA - Hamed Afagh and Aidin Kabir fired in a couple of three-pointers at crucial junctures as Mahram of Iran defended their title in style with a 93-73 win over hosts Al Rayyan of Qatar in the gold medal game on Sunday.

Afagh, who was injured for the encounter between the two in the Group A preliminary round (which Mahram lost 72-78, scored 17 points and Kabir accounted for 10 points.

A 20-2 scoring advantage running through the early part of the second quarter put Mahram in the driver’s seat and Samad Nikkah and Jackson Vroman proved too experienced to blow away the 46-33 lead they had assumed at halftime.

Afagh’s back-to-back three-pointers set Mahram on a 12-0 spree to move ahead from a 24-27 position. And when Omer Salem broke the barren run for Rayyan, Kabir came into the game with his twin long rangers.

Those moments effectively sealed the issue in Mahram’s favor.

Samad Nikkah took over the game adding 20 to his first half’s six for a game-high 26 and Jackson added 11 to the 10 he scored in the first half.

“It’s quite obviously disappointing to lose a championship game, especially if you are the hosts. But then obviously we didn’t play as well as we should have,” Al Rayyan coach Carl Nash said.

“We played exactly to our plan,” said Mahram coach Mostafa Hashemi.

“Afagh’s presence was a boost. But the team also played a lot better than we did the other night,” said Samad.

“It’s always a pleasure playing with this team,” Mahram captain Mahdi Kamrany who effected a game-high 11 points.

“It’s not that we were looking for revenge, but I guess that defeat was always in the back of our mind,” Samad said of the defeat they suffered against Rayyan earlier.

Yasseen Musa was the leading scorer for the hosts with 20 points, but support as well as his own effort were rather sporadic than systematic.

Scores:

Mahram, IRI 93 (Samad Nikkah 26, Jackson Vroman 21, Hamed Afagh 17, Loren Woods 15, Aidin Kabir 10) bt Al Rayyan, QAT 73 (Yasseen Musa 20, Targuy Ngombo 14, Erfan Saeed 14). Quarterwise scores: 22-20, 46-33, 76-49.