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The first round of qualifiers for the Lebanese basketball championship concluded without major surprises. The four favorite teams for the title easily advanced, with all series ending 2-0. It’s worth noting that the four qualified teams played with a 2+1 system throughout the championship, meaning two foreign players on the court and one on the bench since the beginning of the season, unlike the teams bidding farewell to the tournament, which played with three foreigners on the court.

Foreign Players Rule

To clarify matters, the Lebanese Basketball Federation introduced a new system this year in the first division, allowing a team playing with one player from “List A” to recruit three foreigners who can play simultaneously on the court. As for teams with two or more players from “List A,” they can field two foreigners out of three at a time on the court, with the third foreign player remaining on the bench. “List A” comprises the top players of the Lebanese championship, based on statistics compiled by a specialized team of the Lebanese Federation at the end of each year, with an age limit of 35 years.

Amidst proponents and opponents, the Federation has successfully created fierce competition among the clubs with this mix, making it difficult to predict the winner of each match. However, in the end, teams relying on Lebanese players managed to reach the final four, confirming the importance and high level of local talent. Indeed, the team aiming to win the championship must build upon a core of quality Lebanese players complemented by foreigners, not the other way around.

Before the start of the semi-finals, let’s provide an overview of the four qualified teams.

Al-Riyadi

First things first, let’s talk about the reigning champion, Al-Riyadi, leading the championship this season. They’ve been the most consistent team since the start of the season, winning 15 out of 18 matches in the regular league. Al-Riyadi logically swept NSA 2-0 in the quarter-finals, demonstrating a stability level that’s not by chance. The team has retained most of its players from the previous season and hasn’t changed its foreigners since the beginning, fostering great harmony within the team, resulting in winning the Dubai championship and reaching the Wasl championship final. Al-Riyadi is the top offensive team this season, averaging 93.5 points per game.

Beirut SC

Beirut SC kicked off the season with two crowns, first at the friendly tournament in Doha and second at the Arab Clubs Championship, where they appeared in marvelous form. After hiring coach Joe Ghattas and players Ali Mezher and Sergio el-Darwish and renewing Ali Haidar, Beirut SC emerged as a serious contender for the title this season. They finished the season in second place with 13 wins and five losses, earning the advantage of home court and crowd support in the semi-finals, avoiding a clash with Al-Riyadi and strengthening their chances for direct qualification to the Wasl championship next season. Beirut SC is the second-best offensive team with an average of 92.8 points per game.

La Sagesse

After a tumultuous start to the season, La Sagesse found its footing again, seizing the opportunity with Dynamo Beirut’s withdrawal a week before the start of the Lebanese championship to secure the signings of their coach, Jad El Hajj (the national team coach), and stars Karim Ezzedine, Omar Jamaleddine and the return of Mark Khoueiry “BOBO.” The club had a slow start given the circumstances but, according to Jad Hajj, the team has been evolving steadily, with its harmony beginning to show in every match, allowing them to finish the first half of the season atop the championship. However, with difficulties in finding the right foreigners, their momentum waned, and the club experienced a turbulent period in terms of results, ultimately finishing third on equal footing with Beirut SC in terms of wins and losses but with Beirut SC holding the advantage in their direct encounters.

Homenetmen

With Guy Manoukian’s return, Homenetmen is back…

This is how the orange club’s fans welcomed the return of their former president, Guy Manoukian, who announced his comeback midway through the previous season as the president of Homenetmen. Since his departure, the club has struggled domestically, being a step away or less from relegation to the second division, but things quickly turned around with his return to the fold. How could it be otherwise when he clinched the championship title for the first time during the Armenian club’s centennial, an achievement he hopes to repeat in the years to come, asserting that this is the club’s objective. Rebuilding takes time, and the focus is on the championship title. It’s worth mentioning that Homenetmen finished the regular season in fifth place behind Maristes Champville but overturned the situation in the quarter-finals and qualified for the final four.

Fiery clashes await the supporters of the four teams in the semi-finals, where the winner of three matches (best-of-five series) will advance to the final of the Lebanese basketball championship.