Today's Edition
KUUMAR SHYAM (ABU DHABI)
Dubai Basketball have got one hand on the trophy of European basketball's premier tournament, the Adriatic Basketball Association league, in just their second year of participation.
With the grand finals based on the NBA model of best of five, Dubai Basketball got to play the first two games at home against Partizan Belgrade and managed to win both.
They are now just one victory away from completing one of the greatest achievements in UAE basketball's history after defeating Partizan 86-81 in the second game on Friday.
A record-breaking crowd of more than 11,000 fans at Coca-Cola Arena watched Dubai Basketball produce another memorable performance with His Highness Sheikh Mansoor bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, President of the UAE Olympic Committee and Chairman of the Dubai Sports Council, and His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Mansour bin Zayed in the audience as well.
The back-to-back home games demonstrated just how firmly the city has embraced its basketball team during a landmark season that has captured attention of the UAE and beyond.
The only representation from the Gulf region was formed only two years ago and has made rapid strides on the international stage. They entered the elite EuroLeague Basketball this year despite only competing in second campaign, narrowly missed out on the extra season matches.
A top-10 finish would have seen them advance, but they ended up in 11th with the last few home games to be played outside the country due to the conflict in the region.
Nonetheless, reaching the final and now close to winning it with two impressive results in front of a home crowd has set the record straight.
And it proved timely as it was the crowd who came in to play in the first period of the match, lifting them through a tough spell. Aleksandar Sekulić was quick to acknowledge the importance of the fans.
"First of all, again, I have to emphasise the energy and the support we get from the stands. That's something that helped us a lot today," he said moments after beating their Serbian rivals.
"I have to point that out because we were not playing our best basketball in the first half and we were missing a lot of open shots. In the second half, I think it was the energy of the fans, the focus of the players and our bench, which was amazing today. They helped us make this big run, which was enough for this very important win for us."
Partizan made the stronger start and led 20-24 after the opening quarter before Dubai Basketball battled back to level the score at 42-each by half time.
The turning point came late in the third quarter. Trailing 58-61, Dubai Basketball found another gear as Mfiondu Kabengele, Aleksa Avramović and Džanan Musa combined to spark a crucial run that swung momentum back in favour of the home side and reignited the packed arena.
That momentum carried into the final quarter, where Dubai Basketball produced a decisive 9-0 run to open a double-digit lead. The highlight came courtesy of Musa, whose spectacular finish from behind the backboard brought the crowd to its feet and helped secure an 82-69 advantage.
Partizan attempted a late comeback, but Dubai Basketball remained composed to close out the win. Avramović and Musa finished with 16 points each, while Kabengele added 13 points in another influential performance.
The finals now move to Belgrade, where Dubai Basketball will have their first opportunity to secure the ABA League title on Wednesday.
