ZOUK MIKAEL (Lebanon) - Al Riyadi reclaimed the top spot of the 2025-26 FIBA WASL-West Asia League standings by stopping BC Astana in their tracks with a brutal 106-57 beatdown, Wednesday night.
As if it was personal after losing in their last meeting, the reigning champs raced to a 31-16 lead and then broke away wide in the second chapter en route to posting their most convincing win this season thus far.
Making the vengeful win all the more sweeter was ending their Kazakh counterparts' five-game winning streak while they returned to the win column after suffering a 105-91 defeat to Sagesse SC the last time out.
Both squads are now at 5-2 following the result but the Yellow Castle are clearly the no. 1 team again, massive thanks to the 49-point rout which the home fans at the Nouhad Nawfal Sports Complex truly appreciated.
"We played the worst game of the season in Astana due to the long travel and the difference in temperature. These are all excuses, I know, but we didn't play basketball in Astana," reflected head coach Ahmad Farran.
"But we were very confident that we're going to win. We know Astana, this is the third time we are facing them ... I believe we have the upper hand in this group, and we acted like this tonight," he added.
A total of five players finished in double figures for Riyadi, with Nuni Omot leading all scorers with 26 points and 5 rebounds. Perrin Buford fired 22 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists while Hayk Gyokchyan dropped 20 and 10.
It was this same troika that spearheaded their side's early onslaught, combining for 25 points as the crew finished the opening period with a 33-19 lead which set the tone for the rout that ensued just moments later.
The three would already be in twin digits before the break, with the South Sudanese star himself registering 21. Gyokchyan and Buford had 16 and 15, respectively, as they led the charge toward a 67-32 advantage.
Ismail Ahmad supplied 12 points and 11 rebounds, as Amir Saoud chipped in 11 points alongside 5 assists for a squad that continues to miss the services of Karim Zeinoun and Maurice Kemp due to injuries.
The team shot 51.9-percent from the floor behind 22 assists against only 5 turnovers and they did all that in the presence of a very special guest in Wael Arakji, who's currently with Al Ula in the WASL-Gulf League.
"Wael is a Riyadi player. Wael is the main character in Riyadi, even if he's away now. But hopefully, very soon, he will join the team," said Farran of the newly minted Saudi Basketball League champion.
Riyadi will look to secure the no. 1 spot entering the Semi-Finals when they take on Shahrdari Gorgan next Wednesday in the same venue, going up against a team that's in the midst of a two-game losing skid.
Robert Pan had 15 points while Askar Maydekin made 11 to lead Astana in the loss, which is easily their worst defeat to date this season as they couldn't rekindle the same spirit they showed versus Sagesse last week.
Coach Ramunas Crvika and his charges, currently at second, will look to bounce back versus Al Wahda SC on February 19, Thursday, at the latter's home floor at the Al Fayhaa Stadium in Damascus, Syria.
FIBA