ABL Round 5 (Regular Season): #1 Nakhchivan is defeated by Ordu

Here is the last round review presented by Job Market.

The most surprising game was the first loss of Nakhchivan (3-1) at the home court on Friday night. Hosts were defeated by sixth ranked Ordu (2-2) 84-76. It ended at the same time the three-game winning streak of Nakhchivan. Americans were the main players on the court. Guard Tyler Johnson (188-2001, college: Mercer) stepped up and scored 27 points, 6 assists and 4 steals for the winners and forward Camron Reece (202-1999, college: Talladega) chipped in 16 points and 8 rebounds. Ordu's coach Polad Hasanov used a ten-player rotation which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. Guard Jeremy Hayes (193-1997, college: Angelo St.) responded with 30 points and 6 assists. Ordu moved-up to fourth place, which they share with Gence and Lions. Nakhchivan at the other side dropped to the second position with one game lost. They share it with Sabah.
Important game to mention about took place in Baku. Leader Neftci (4-0) saved a 2-point victory at home edging 4th placed Lions (2-2) 86-84 on Saturday evening. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of Lions. Canadian guard Shakael Pryce (188, college: Cape Breton) nailed 27 points and 7 assists for the winning side and Milic Starovlah accounted for 22 points and 6 rebounds (on 6-of-7 shooting from the field). American swingman DeOndre Jackson (192-1996, college: PBA) came up with 25 points and 4 assists for Lions in the defeat. Lions' coach Erhan Toker rotated ten players in this game, but that didn't help. Neftci have a solid series of four victories in a row. They maintain first place with 4-0 record. Lions at the other side keep the fourth position with two games lost. They share it with Gence and Ordu.
Bottom-ranked NTD (0-5) is still winless. This time they lost on the road their fifth consecutive match to sixth ranked Gence (2-2) 100-80 on Sunday evening. Americans were the main players on the court also this time. The best player for the winners was Xavier Rhodes who scored 26 points and 7 assists (on 8-of-10 shooting from the field). Galen Smith produced a double-double by scoring 21 points and 18 rebounds for the guests. Both coaches used bench players and allowed the starting five to rest. Gence moved-up to fourth place, which they share with Lions and Ordu. Loser NTD still closes the standings with five games lost.

In the last game of round 5 Sabah won against Sumqayit on the opponent's court 100-85.
The most impressive stats of the last round was 23 points and 4 steals by Malek Green of Sumqayit.



Nakhchivan - Ordu 76-84:
The most surprising game was the first loss of Nakhchivan (3-1) at the home court on Friday night. Hosts were defeated by sixth ranked Ordu (2-2) 84-76. It ended at the same time the three-game winning streak of Nakhchivan. Americans were the main players on the court. Guard Tyler Johnson (188-2001, college: Mercer) stepped up and scored 27 points, 6 assists and 4 steals for the winners and forward Camron Reece (202-1999, college: Talladega) chipped in 16 points and 8 rebounds. Four Ordu players scored in double figures. Ordu's coach Polad Hasanov used a ten-player rotation which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. Guard Jeremy Hayes (193-1997, college: Angelo St.) responded with 30 points and 6 assists and forward Jamaal Brantley (198-1993, college: Cameron) scored 13 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists. Ordu moved-up to fourth place, which they share with Gence and Lions. Nakhchivan at the other side dropped to the second position with one game lost. They share it with Sabah.
Top scorers:
Nakhchivan: J.Hayes 30+3reb+6ast, J.Brantley 13+7reb+4ast, D.Stevens 11+4reb+4ast, K.Oleg 8+9reb+1ast, M.Wilmoth 7+8reb+2ast, B.Murad 5+3reb
Ordu: J.Tyler 27+4reb+6ast, R.Camron 16+8reb+3ast, S.Grant 15+6reb+5ast, T.Jaylan 13+4reb+2ast, K.Artem 7+4reb, A.Mammadov 6+5reb+1ast

Neftci - Lions 86-84:
Important game to mention about took place in Baku. Leader Neftci (4-0) saved a 2-point victory at home edging 4th placed Lions (2-2) 86-84 on Saturday evening. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of Lions. Neftci made 18-of-22 charity shots (81.8 percent) during the game. Canadian guard Shakael Pryce (188, college: Cape Breton) nailed 27 points and 7 assists for the winning side and Montenegrin Milic Starovlah (199-1998, agency: BIG) accounted for 22 points and 6 rebounds (on 6-of-7 shooting from the field). American swingman DeOndre Jackson (192-1996, college: PBA) came up with 25 points and 4 assists and the other American import forward Edward Polite Jr (196-1997, college: Radford) added 10 points and 6 rebounds respectively for Lions in the defeat. Four Lions players scored in double figures. Lions' coach Erhan Toker rotated ten players in this game, but that didn't help. Neftci have a solid series of four victories in a row. They maintain first place with 4-0 record. Lions at the other side keep the fourth position with two games lost. They share it with Gence and Ordu.
Top scorers:
Lions: D.Jackson 25+2reb+4ast, G.Orelik 14+1ast, K.Walton 11+1reb+1ast, E.Polite Jr. 10+6reb+2ast, J.Perkins 10+2reb+1ast, A.Sakenis 6+9reb+2ast
Neftci: P.Shakael 27+4reb+7ast, S.Milic 22+6reb+1ast, S.Aleksa 18+3reb+3ast, U.Turgut 6+2reb+1ast, N.Nasirov 5+1reb+2ast, J.Robinson 5+2reb

Gence - NTD 100-80:
Bottom-ranked NTD (0-5) is still winless. This time they lost on the road their fifth consecutive match to sixth ranked Gence (2-2) 100-80 on Sunday evening. Gence forced 20 NTD turnovers. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 27 assists. Americans were the main players on the court also this time. The best player for the winners was guard Xavier Rhodes (185-2000, college: NKU) who scored 26 points and 7 assists (on 8-of-10 shooting from the field). Forward Latavious Mitchell (203-2002, college: FMU) chipped in a double-double by scoring 13 points and 13 rebounds. Five Gence players scored in double figures. Power forward Galen Smith (204-1999, college: Mississippi Coll.) produced a double-double by scoring 21 points and 18 rebounds and guard Cobie Montgomery (193-2001, college: Southern Miss, agency: BIG) added 26 points and 5 rebounds respectively for the guests. Both coaches used bench players and allowed the starting five to rest. Gence moved-up to fourth place, which they share with Lions and Ordu. Loser NTD still closes the standings with five games lost.
Top scorers:
NTD: C.Montgomery 26+5reb+2ast, S.Galen 21+18reb+3ast, J.Ewing 13+4reb, H.Mahammad 8+3reb+5ast, H.Maqsud 6+1reb+6ast, Q.Huseyn 6+2reb+1ast
Gence: R.Xavier 26+4reb+7ast, M.Kobe 13+8reb+5ast, M.Latavious 13+13reb+2ast, C.Bakary 13+2reb+6ast, A.Mammadli 12+3ast, F.Alekberov 9+4reb+2ast

Sumqayit - Sabah 85-100:
Very expected game when 7th ranked Sumqayit (1-4) was defeated at home by third ranked Sabah (3-1) 100-85 on Sunday. Sabah looked well-organized offensively handing out 29 assists. The game was dominated by American players. The best player for the winners was forward Frankie Fidler (201-2003, college: Michigan St.) who scored 20 points and 4 assists. Guard Michael Ertel II (187-1999, college: UAB) chipped in 19 points and 5 assists (on 7-of-8 shooting from the field). Jacorie Archie (198-1998, college: GSW) produced 16 points, 6 rebounds and 8 assists and forward Malek Green (201-1999, college: YSU) added 23 points and 4 steals respectively for the hosts. Both teams had five players each who scored in double figures. Both coaches tested many bench players saving starting five for next games. Defending champion moved-up to second place, which they share with Nakhchivan. Sumqayit lost fourth consecutive game. They keep the seventh position with four games lost.
Top scorers:
Sumqayit: M.Green 23+2reb+2ast, J.Watson 19+1reb+6ast, J.Archie 16+6reb+8ast, T.Kirk 12+3reb+4ast, A.Holt 11+3reb+3ast, J.Ogundele 4+5reb
Sabah: F.Frankie 20+4reb+4ast, E.Michael 19+3reb+5ast, B.Gerry 15+2reb+8ast, P.Nick 11+4reb+4ast, M.Charles 11+3reb+3ast, B.Quincy 8+1reb+1ast