WABA League – ASU book ticket to Manila

AMMAN (WABA League) - Applied Science University asserted their superiority in the second quarter stepping up a gear to cruise to a 85-74 win against Al Riyadi Aramex in the in Sunday's qualifying game to identify the Jordanian representative from WABA for the 22nd FIBA Asia Champions Cup.

ASU had lost to Iran’s Mahram and Aramex to Al Jala’a of Syria in the quarterfinals of this year’s WABA League.

Aramex played well within themselves to keep pace with the pre-game favourites during the first quarter – even managing to go ahead by 5 points on two occasions.

But ASU - losing semi-finalists at the 21st FIBA Asia Champions Cup in Doha last year - kept their noses ahead 19-18 at the end of the first quarter.

A 13-0 run midway through the second quarter took ASU beyond their rivals’ reach, with ASU seemingly only playing for time thereafter.

Mousa Al Awadih led ASU’s scoring with 20 points. Mohammad Hadrab had 14 points.

Tony Danridge’s 23-point game-high for Aramex went in vain. Sani Sakakini had 15 points.

Four WABA teams are eligible for the 2010 FIBA Asia Champions Cup to be held in Manila in May, but no more than one team can represent each National Federation.

Jala’a along with Al Riyadi Beirut of Lebanon – the two finalists – have already qualified, while earlier in the dayvMahram defeated fellow Iranian team Zob Ahan 84-78 in the game to qualify as the Iranian representative.

FIBA Asia