Recaps Week 2

Hamza Warriors Vs Hamza Hawks

This week started with a bang. The Hamza Hawks for the first time were predicted to beat their fellow Masjid Hamza rivals, and they delivered. From the tip captain Hussain Arif kept the energy up, getting on his guys for small miscues. Hussain carried this squad last season, but now he has some help with guys like Dar and Manjoo coming in, and guys like Saad Rana and Momin Qadri returning. Hussain kept the pace to the Hawks advantage and clamped up top on their zone, and Safwan Manjoo controlled the boards and was a strong defensive presence for the guys in green. Abdullah Dar helped by dropping a quite 8 points as well. On the other side of the ball, the Warriors each played the worst game in the past 2 seasons individually. Omer Rana was grabbing rebounds but continuously called for 3 second violations, Bilal Lateef scored 6 points and Shamikh Ahsan scored 0. I think they need to focus more on basketball and less on complaining to the refs! Zak Williams was the only highlight for this Warriors team dropping a calm 13 points to go along with 6 rebounds. This game was a great upset and a fantastic way for the Hawks to start their season.

ICM Mambas Vs Bilal Bears

This game started with a complete dismantling of the Bears by the Mambas. They were hitting on all ends. Their Defense was pesky and strong while their offense came easily and natural. I like the tandem of Mohammad Elzanaty and ZQ Hussaini. Mojtaba Tokhie made his appearance to this season for the first time after missing last week, and he looked to continue his solid play as the Mambas big man. Arbaaz also had a career night dropping a team high 14 points. The three headed dragon of Arbaaz-Mohammad-ZQ poses a big threat to any team. The Bears have had a weakness in thier starting 5 since the first season, they have always lacked a strong 5th. With Arif Tursonzadah out, they had to play without their best defender. That being said, Yaqub Najimi had a rough start to his LIMBA 2018 season, with only 5 points off of 13 shots. Wali carried the scoring load as usual, dropping a season high 28 points. He also picked up his 2nd tech of the season. One more and he is suspended for a whole game. I really doubt Wali can keep himself under control as he hasnt shown that ability through 3 seasons. Wali is a top 3 player in this league, but you cant help your team when youre suspended. Its time he starts acting like an adult and keep his emotions in check.

Al-Baqi Blazers Vs ICLI FLVKO

The Blazers came out firing on all cylinders, shooting very well from deep. All the role players played well around Shahid, who dropped a loud 20 points, pulling up from half court on multiple occasions. The defense count find an answer for Shahid, or any of his teammates. Hamid Ahmad had a great introduction to LIMBA, dropping a calm and efficient 10 points. Mujib Zaraei also played well, dropping 7 points, while Hafiz Khan controlled the defense down low while adding in a quite 6. ICLI on the other hand is showing that they are in desperate need for a guard to help them on offense. Their defense was a disaster, only getting lucky when the Blazers missed, who by the way dropped 60 points in their debut game of the season. Rashiq played very well leading his team with 22 points, and his fellow big man, Zahran Abukoush, dropped 20. Only 10 points of this teams 54 did NOT come from either Rashiq or Zahran. Ashique was nowhere to be found all game, dropping a donut along with Ubaid Yousufzai.

This FLVKO team is disappointing.

BIC Blue Storm Vs JMB BucketTeam

The Blue Storm came out in week 2, after giving up a big lead to the Warriors in the second half, on a mission. They wanted to prove to the league that they are legit, and I think they did that. Raphin Shapon played very well, being the vocal leader of this team and doing a little bit of everything. He dropped 12 while also grabbing 11 rebounds. He got it done on the defensive end as well, as shown on the instagram highlight reel. Wasi is a tank. Hes balling out in LIMBA after dropping 23 against this JMB BucketTeam squad. They had no answer for him. Hamza Akram did what he came to do, and that was control the boards. On the other side of the ball the only bright spots were Hamza Haque and the fact that everyone on the team scored. Coach Anique needs to find a solution to this...quick.

Recaps week 1

The first game of the season was forfeited by the Hamza Hawks, giving the Al-Baqi Blazers an Auto Win.

Bilal Bears V JMB BucketTeam

The first game played this season was between the JMB BucketTeam and the Bilal Bears. This was predicted to be a blow away game, and it looked to be that way. The Bears held the lead from beginning to end. It took a few minutes and multiple possessions for either squad to score a basket. Every Time the Bears needed a basket, their All Star Center, Wali Hamrah, stepped up and delivered. He ended the game with 16 points, a league leading performance. Zain controlled the boards with 11 rebounds, while tossing in a silent 10 points, which helped the Bears control the tempo of the game. On the other hand, the BucketTeam was trailing the entire game. This game started sloppy, but the Bears cleaned up their act, while the BucketTeam continued to turn the ball over, take contested shots, and play iso ball. The Bears got the W, but I think JMB beat themselves just as much as the Bears beat them. I don't care if you're the best team in the league, any team playing that sloppy will go home with an L. So JMB does have some good news, had they not given the Bears the ball every other possession they could have possibly contended in the game. The bad news is that they run iso every play while being the team with the most chemistry in the league. I think this team needs to start attacking teams as a unit instead of taking turns chucking up shots. Nasser started hot, hitting a couple of 3s, but got cold. Hamza Haque needs to demand the ball more. Uzair is the facilitator of this team, but when Hamza drives, teams defenses collapse, leaving open shooters at the 3 point line. The game got chippy at one point with Technical fouls being assessed. This is yet another reminder, fighting will not be tolerated this season. Bears won by 11.

ICM Mambas V ICLI FLVKO

This game was great from beginning to end. The Mambas came out and had something to prove against a league they feel looks at them differently. They controlled the game from the tip. This teams defense was amazing, clamping up on all cylinders. ZQ Hussaini made an early bid for DPOY with some nasty swats holding down the paint in a game where the Mambas were missing their starting Center. The Elzanaty brothers combined for more than half of the total points of the Mambas. All good stuff from the Mambas putting on a defensive clinic without their starting center and arguably best defender Mojtaba Tokhie. A lot of good things out of this team week 1. On the other hand the ICLI FLVKO underperformed in every category. Nibras Islam went 0 for 8 from deep, 0 for 4 from the field and missed his 2 free throws. Maybe he needs to use that miswak a little less before games. Rashiq Rafeeq was 0 for 3 from deep and 2 for 5 from the field while getting into foul trouble. He is a much better player than this, and has to perform at a higher level to get his team a W. Hamza Malik and Ubaid Yousufzai didn't do anything to help them get over the hump. Ashique and Zahran carried the scoring load, with only 6 points not coming from them. This team was constantly complaining to the refs, got a tech, and even arguing with each other. This was a bad performance on the court but all the drama on the sidelines was even less professional. I expected this team to be a physical team, but maybe they were too physical with many of their stars in foul trouble. The Mambas had good defense but FLVKO also played some sloppy possessions. The Mambas held the lead throughout the game, winning by 5.

BIC Blue Storm V Hamza Warriors

This was an interesting game. It started in the complete opposite way most of the league expected with the Blue Storm getting off to a 10+ lead at one point in the first half. I don't know if this is attested to their great play or the possibility that it just took a few minutes for the Warriors to get their new pieces acclimated. Mohammad Wasi leads the league along with Wali Hamrah by dropping 16 points. Hamza Akram was a great player for this BIC team, throwing gems and being efficient on the boards, from the field and at the line. When they needed a bucket, they looked towards Hamza to get the offense started. By half time this game was tied up, and at that point most people knew the Warriors were about to march. In the second half, BIC was desperate for someone to kick start their offense, but didn't have much luck looking for that. Shamikh hit a few threes, Omer Rana controlled the boards again, and Zak hit from everywhere in the 2nd half, leading this Warriors squad to their first W of the season.