The UAE national team secured a convincing victory in their Gulf match against Kuwait, winning 87-83 and thus claiming third place in the tough Group B, behind Egypt and Tunisia. This result sets up a quarter-final match against Algeria next Monday.
The game featured strange twists, as the UAE team almost paid the price for defensive errors and turnovers in the second and third quarters. They dominated the first quarter, winning it by ten points with a score of 32-22. In the second quarter, Kuwait exploited the UAE's defensive mistakes and the haste of their players in attack, successfully completing the half in their favor with a score of 26-16, bringing the teams to a tie at 48-48, restarting the match with no clear leader.
Kuwait continued their resurgence in the third quarter, leading 69-63 by its end. However, the UAE players reduced their defensive errors and managed to apply pressure on the ball handler, compensating for the six-point deficit and ultimately winning the thrilling quarter by 24-14.
A quick look at the game statistics shows that the UAE scored 19 points in the paint, made 12 three-pointers from 35 attempts, and successfully converted 13 free throws out of 14, achieving a 92% free throw rate. They gathered 43 rebounds, including 30 defensive rebounds, 24 assists, 19 turnovers, and 11 steals. Meanwhile, Kuwait scored 20 points in the paint, made 8 three-pointers from 24 attempts, and converted 19 free throws from 25 attempts, accumulating 40 rebounds, including 27 defensive rebounds, 19 assists, 17 turnovers, and 12 assists. Both Demarco Christian from the UAE and Ahmed Abdullah from Kuwait were the top scorers, each with 19 points.
