Rattle and Roll: Neighborhood Basketball League (NBL) 2019 continues
IBA and Bahrains won the first day games when they defeated their respective opponents in the matches contested in the Neighborhood Basketball League (NBL) 2019 which is being held at Neighborhood Park Clifton, Karachi.
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The inaugural match of Neighborhood Basketball League (NBL) was a clash between IBA and LUMS Big 3 teams where IBA recorded the very first victory of the league on the final score line of 32-29.
It was a tightly contested affair, with both teams having difficulty breaking the other down in the early stages of the game as both teams continued to exchange the lead in a battle of tactics with the LUMS big 3 doing their best to gain dominance in the paint.
The game was ultimately decided with a magnificent performance by Zia Ahmed, who bullied his way into the post and made crucial buckets for his team when it counted. He almost averaged a double-double, ending the game with a stat-line of 11 points and 9 rebounds. He was awarded the NBL player of the Game for his efforts.
There was a late surge by Mikael, as he tried his level best to orchestrate a comeback for LUMS, but fell narrowly short, ending the game in the hands of IBA team.
The second game was a thrilling encounter between Blazers and Bahrains where Blazers busted out to an early 14-4 lead, but Bahrains proved their presence on the boards to fight back over the next three quarters to forge a come back and pull off a major upset winning the game 44-45.
The second day of the league witnessed only match that involved the seasoned veterans from Batmans taking on the upstarts from the Blazers, where Batmans claimed the win on 69-65 score line.
Batmans players took over the first quarter, slicing through their opponent's defence with ease. After going down 14 points the Blazers adjusted and claw their way back in and had a 6 point lead with 5 mins left. Batmans refused to lose and two cold blooded threes from Asad Hashim gave them a one point lead. With 10 secpnds left Abdullah hit the dagger to put the Blazers away.
