ZOUK MIKAEL (Lebanon) - Al Riyadi completed their quest for a 'three-peat' as they clinched the 2024/2025 FIBA WASL-West Asia crown following an 84-66 victory over Amman United Club, Saturday night.
The Yellow Castle took the lead early before breaking away in the middle quarters, turning the final period into a celebration among their ever-supportive fans inside the Stade Nouhad Naufal for the history they wrote.
They have now become just the first team in the pan-regional competition to win a title for three consecutive times, and they accomplished as much still with a game to spare in their Sub-Zone League campaign.
"It's an amazing achievement for Al Riyadi and for us on a personal level," offered head coach Ahmad Farran. "Dominating the region three times in a row, this is something big for us."
Amir Saoud led the way for Al Riyadi with 19 points and 5 assists, scoring 11 in the fourth quarter alone to preside over the strong finish toward netting their seventh win in as many games in the tournament.
Wael Arakji delivered 15 points, producing much of his output in the game's first 20 minutes as the star backcourt tandem took turns in taking charge to help the club secure the victory - and the history, of course.
Hayk Gyokchyan came through with 11 points as the locals did much of the damage, enabling Marcus Georges-Hunt to relax a bit on offense after submitting impressive performances in their past outings.
The two-time Gulf League titlist only had 10 points but there was no denying his impact, for he scored 8 of which in just the third canto to help give his side a 61-46 lead by quarter's end, setting up the dominant closeout.
Now, Al Riyadi will turn their attention to Tabiat Basketball in a clash between FIBA WASL Final 8-bound squads on Sunday night at 21:45 local time to wrap up the tilt, looking of course to complete the 8-game sweep.
"We did the job. We continued the streak and this is the goal. Tomorrow there's a big game waiting for us, and we will do our best also to finish with eight wins," said the decorated bench tactician.
Big man Jonathan Arledge, on the other hand, finished with 19 points and 7 rebounds to lead the also-ran Amman United, who finished their first WASL campaign with only two wins across eight outings.
Amin Abu Hawwas and Hashem Abbas backed him up with 13 apiece in the loss. which saw the Jordanian Premier League outfit trail by as many as 22 - and allowed the home team to shoot 46-percent from the floor.
"it's the first year for the club so it gave us a big experience," said head coach Abdullah Abuqoura. "We played tough games in WASL, and so I hope that it helps us in our Jordanian league and improve our basketball."
FIBA