Seeb secured the men’s Credit Oman Basketball Cup with a narrow 66-62 victory over Al Bashayer in a closely contested final held Monday at the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex in Bausher. The win marked Seeb’s capture of the season-opening trophy following a tightly fought match.
In the women’s competition, Masirah claimed the title after defeating Salalah 55-50 on Sunday. The awards ceremony took place under the patronage of HH Sayyid Nawaf bin Barghash al Said, Chairman of Oman Club, alongside Oman Basketball Association Chairman Eng Khalfan bin Saleh al Naabi. The event also included a tribute to recently retired international referee Dr Issam al Siyabi in recognition of his contribution to the sport.
The men’s final featured a back-and-forth battle from the outset. Seeb began strongly with early three-pointers from Marquez Samir and William Ander, but Al Bashayer fought back, ending the first quarter with a 19-17 lead. During the second quarter, Al Bashayer extended their advantage to 26-17, propelled by Vante Rose, Saeed al Saadi, and Momath Seck. Seeb gradually narrowed the gap, with Rasheed al Zahaibi and Abdulrahman al Shueibi key in reversing the score to lead 36-34 at halftime.
After halftime, Al Bashayer reclaimed the lead multiple times, maintaining a 50-47 edge going into the final quarter. Seeb’s Samir scored six points early in the last period, giving his team a brief lead at 53-50, but Rose helped Al Bashayer retake the lead shortly after. The teams exchanged scores, leveling at 58-58 before Seeb pulled ahead in the closing minutes to secure the win.
Seeb coach Moslem Hadded expressed satisfaction with his team’s performance, emphasizing how fine margins determined the outcome between two evenly matched squads. He praised the quality of both local and foreign players and expressed optimism about further progress.
William Ander, a key player for Seeb, described the contest as intense and commended the referees for allowing both sides to play freely. He refuted suggestions that Seeb had staged a comeback from a large deficit, instead noting that both teams had scoring runs but Seeb’s came at crucial moments. Ander emphasized his focus on continuing to win in future competitions.
Al Bashayer’s Hadeed Bait Bakhit congratulated Seeb on their victory while also voicing concerns over some refereeing decisions during the match. He called on the Oman Basketball Association to introduce an Instant Replay System (IRS) to enable officials to review critical calls. Despite the loss, Hadeed affirmed his team’s acceptance of the result.
Eng Khalfan bin Saleh al Naabi, chairman of the Oman Basketball Association, praised the high technical standard and competitiveness of the final. He described the tournament as a positive indicator for the season ahead, which includes ongoing under-17 competitions, upcoming youth fixtures, and the start of the men’s league scheduled for later in the week.
Regarding the replay system proposal, Al Naabi said implementation was under the authority of the referees’ committee. He noted that Omani referees recently completed training on updated rules and expressed confidence that continued feedback would enhance the quality of future tournaments. He also welcomed new participants in the under-17 competition, highlighting the role of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth’s athlete development centers in supporting the sport’s long-term growth.