DUBAI (United Arab Emirates) - Riddled by injuries and all, Al Riyadi still proved to be too much as they rolled past Shabab Al Ahli yet again, 100-78, to book a return trip to the BCL Asia Final, Thursday night.
Buoyed by their ever-supportive fans that trooped to the Coca-Cola Arena, the reigning champions took control in the third canto before breaking away in the final frame to move closer to a successful title defense.
And in less than 24 hours, the 10 remaining players will look to complete their back-to-back bid as they face the Utsunomiya Brex in the championship bout scheduled at 20:00 local time in the same venue.
Without a doubt, it's going to be a much more personal outing for the Yellow Castle, with each of them hoping to get the job done as they rally in the absence of their injured stars in Wael Arakji and Amir Saoud.
Arakji, who's ruled out of the tournament due to an apparent shoulder injury, still made it a point to join his team and watch from the bench - and went on to witness plenty of heroes gamely step up to the plate.
Hayk Gyokchyan, for one, top-scored in the triumph with 24 points and 11 rebounds as he has regained his old form after notching a double-double as well to help beat the Zhejiang Guangsha Lions in the Quarter-Finals.
Ali Mansour, on the other hand, almost finished with a historic triple-double as he registered 20 points, 9 rebounds, and 9 assists. He also had 3 steals in the 35 minutes he logged to net an efficiency of 33.
Together, they helped out in the team's strong second-half showing, first by chipping in to turn a narrow two-point lead to a decade's worth of a spread at 70-60 with less than two minutes left in the third.
Gyokchyan then took his turn in leading another rally, which would turn out to be a decisive 12-0 scoring spree toward a commanding 85-67 advantage with 5:09 remaining in the deciding chapter.
Deshawndre Washington did stop the bleeding for Shabab Al Ahli but it was all too late for the hosts, with Georges-Hunt, Elmedin Kikanovic, and Karim Zeinoun coming in to put the game out of reach.
Georges-Hunt finished with 21 points alongside 4 rebounds and 4 assists against his former team. Zeinoun supplied 13 points and 3 steals, while Thon Maker added 12 points and 5 rebounds in the triumph.
The loss, meanwhile, wasted the 30-piece produced by Washington although nothing disappoints Shabab Al Ahli more than falling short of returning to the Final - and missing a chance to finish their story.
The FIBA WASL-Gulf League titlists came in with revenge in mind after losing to Al Riyadi in the BCL Asia inaugurals' Final last year in the same city and in the WASL Final 8 2025 Semi-Finals as well in Lebanon.
Still, Coach Miodrag Perisic and his wards could salvage a podium finish when they take on BCL Asia-East 2025 champions Ulaanbaatar Xac Broncos in the Third-Place Game set on June 13 as well at 17:00 local time.
FIBA