ZOUK MIKAEL (Lebanon) - Marcus Georges-Hunt reintroduced himself as he led Al Riyadi to a 94-79 trouncing of Al Difaa Al Jawi SC to remain perfect in the 2024/2025 FIBA WASL-West Asia League, Tuesday night.
Needing only little time to adjust to the Stade Nouhad Naufal, the former NBA pro finished with 23 points on 9-of-15 shooting from the field for a big announcement of his return to the pan-regional competition.
Fans and pundits of WASL know the wide-bodied wing as an integral piece to Kuwait Club's back-to-back success in the Gulf League and now, he bolsters a team looking to achieve a three-peat in their Sub-Zone League.
They've moved closer to that target after earning their fifth victory in as many outings by keeping their Iraqi counterparts winless with a 0-5 card, making their next three games must-win if they are to stay alive.
Game heroes: Aside from Georges-Hunt, turning in a solid Yellow Castle debut was Croatian big man Marin Maric, who flirted with a double-double with 21 points and 9 rebounds with 5 assists in 24 minutes off the bench.
The latest additions did extremely well that the usual providers managed to get some extra time to rest, although Wael Arakji still finished in twin digits with 14 points and 7 assists. Karim Zeinoun chipped in 10 points.
And the key cogs staying fresh should bode well for Al Riyadi as they're bound for a collision course yet again with Sagesse SC on Wednesday night also at 21:45 local time in another chapter of the 'Beirut Derby.'
Turning point: The reigning FIBA WASL champions actually started slow and even stared at a 24-14 deficit during the first quarter, giving shades of their First Round encounter where they faced danger albeit late in the game.
But none from the squad panicked whatsoever, especially their two reinforcements. It actually became an avenue for both Georges-Hunt and Maric to prove their worth even more by powering the comeback.
Behind the tandem plus some aid from Arakji and Hayk Gyokchyan, Al Riyadi ended the first quarter with a 14-0 run to take control, 28-24, and went on to taste their first double-digit lead at 37-27 early in the next frame.
However, it wasn't until the third where they'd break away for good, with Mohamad Bilal Tabbara and Karim Zeinoun joining hands for a strong push to give themselves the 77-62 lead to end the period.
Stats don't lie: Al Riyadi shot nearly 53-percent from the floor and a key factor behind that is their 30 assists, marking the second time this season that the team had collected as many dimes in a game.
They had 32 in their 108-88 romping over Amman United Club back in the First Round last March, which is the most by a team in a single game in the ongoing edition of WASL-West Asia League.
They said: "We achieved the target of tonight, which is to start with a win in the Second Round and try to create more gaps between us and teams following us. This is the most important thing, that we grabbed the win ... there's a lot of positives on this game especially our new guys." - Ahmad Farran, Head Coach, Al Riyadi
"Me and Marin, we're just trying to catch chemistry with the team. We're sharing the ball, there's great energy. So we just gotta keep getting better each day, and take it day by day." - Marcus Georges-Hunt, Al Riyadi
"We succeeded in three-pointers and played well offensively. But in the third and fourth quarters, we made some tunovers that helped Riyadi take the lead." - Nidhal Salman, Head Coach, Al Difaa Al Jawi SC
"Well, it's our first time in WASL. We knew that it would be a challenge for us. But the most important thing was to come here and show that we can compete. Play for Difaa Al Jawi, show everybody around the world and West Asia that Iraq has good teams. That was more of our challenge." - Ramon Galloway, Al Difaa Al Jawi SC
FIBA