Kazma players react with excitement after a basket.

KUWAIT CITY, Nov 16: Kazma Basketball will welcome Shabab Al-Ahli Dubai tonight at 7 p.m. at the Basketball Federation Hall, in the third round of Group A of the West Asia Super League (Gulf Zone) “WASL.”

Al-Ittihad of Saudi Arabia leads the group with 5 points from two wins and one loss, despite a narrow 79–84 defeat to Bahrain’s Al-Muharraq last week in the opening match of the third round. The victory moved Al-Muharraq into second place with 4 points from one win and two losses, while Kazma sits third with 3 points—equal with Shabab Al-Ahli in fourth.

Kazma, under Slovenian coach Bojan Lazic, aims to bounce back after its last loss to Al-Ittihad. The “Orange” opened the tournament with a win over Al-Muharraq and is eager to challenge Al-Ittihad for the top spot by securing a win tonight, keeping their hopes for direct qualification alive. The group remains highly competitive, with all four teams closely matched, making it difficult to predict which sides will advance.

Kazma will lean on the experience of captain Ahmed Al-Balushi, along with Abdulrahman Al-Sahou, Hussein Al-Khabbaz, Abdullah Ibrahim, and Abdulaziz Al-Fadhli, and will be complemented by American players Phil Greene and JaJuan Johnson, as well as Serbian talent Strahinja Miković.

By Hassan Mosa

Al-Seyassah/Arab Times Staff