19 Jan. 2017 – Flashback to round 1, Byblos steals a crucial win away from home against Mouttahed 83-78. Now, both teams will meet once again in round 10 in Jbeil.
Byblos are no doubt looking favorites in that matchup as they hold a 7-2 record while battling Riyadi for 2nd place. Mouttahed meanwhile, had higher expectations of the regular season, but can still turn things around as they are 2 games far from 2nd place while sitting in 5th.
Ever since joining the Tripoli based team, Cleveland Melvin has turned out to be a great asset, averaging 20 points and 10 rebounds per game on 45.6% shooting. He will no doubt be a huge headache for Ali Kanaan & Joe Abi Khers who will surely take turns at guarding him. On the other hand, Ali has the ability to make him defend him from the arc as he’s a good shooter, which means giving Ebi more space to operate under the basket.
Ndudi Ebi has been one of the best big guys this year, with 21 points, 12.2 rebounds and 2.33 blocks per game. His mobility given his size is scary which makes him a threat to any defense. Denzel Bowles will have to be at his best in his third game with Mouttahed in order to try and contain Ebi while delivering on the other end.
Byblos’ main offensive threat is Jay Youngblood. There is no doubt this player is the best on his team and he has been outstanding recently. In his last outing he dropped 28 points on 55% field goal percentage to gift his team an important win against Tadamon. Clay Tucker meanwhile can be a big liability if his shot is not falling, as his other capabilities are rather limited. For example, in the last game he got 24 points and before that he had 4 games with the best of them consisting of just 13 points.
Rodrigue Akl has been a great all around point guard this year, one of the best no doubt. He will face his brother today, Ralf, who’s also been of outstanding form. Their battle will be fun to watch and the one who can control the tempo better will surely have the edge. Byblos will also rely on Tarek Ammoury defensively to try and shut Ramel Curry off, while Mouttahed will give Elie Rustom and Omar Ayyoubi the task of guarding Jay.
The game is going to be great to watch. Both teams need the win in such an important match because it can greatly affect their standing.
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