Dubai: The foreign duo of Vincent Jones and Mohammadou Mustafa yesterday worked out a lethal combination to help Al Shabab, Dubai to a fast-paced 89-73 win against Champville of Lebanon and along with it the third place in the 2nd December International Basketball Tournament.
Jones, an American, led all scorers with 28 points while Mustafa of Senegal played the perfect foil with 21 points including a couple of three-pointers as the hosts outscored the youthful Lebanese brigade in all quarters.
Playmaker Hassan Dandash top-scored for Champville with 20 points including a pair of triples, while Eduardo Bushara came in handy with 17 points.
Arab Clubs Champions Sharjah Club were scheduled to play Al Riyadhi of Lebanon to decide the winner of the inaugural edition of the competition later last night.
As expected, Champville coach Gassan Sarkis rested all his main players yesterday, a ploy that assisted the home side as Al Shabab coach Ahmad Omar pushed Jones upfront leaving Mustafa manning the defence. Al Shabab led by eight points (20-12) by the end of the opening period, and by 14 at half-time (44-30) as the inexperienced Lebanese faltered with their shooting for a second time in as many days.
They stepped up their efforts further in the third quarter for a smooth 16-point cushion (72-56) going into the final period. Champville did attempt a late surge and a difference of ten points at 76-66 was all they could manage as Hussain Ali and Mustafa helped themselves to a triple each as Al Shabab finished off at 89-73.
Aggressive play
"They [Champville] play aggressive and the only way we could get out of this was to go out there in search of the points," Jones said. "We were disappointed that we did not make it to the final, so our target was at least a third place in this tournament. Of course we benefited that Champville did not start with their main players," he added.
RESULT
Third place (play-off): Al Shabab bt Champville, Lebanon 89-73.
