Conrad Dubai made a thrilling comeback in the closing minutes of the fourth quarter to sink Atlantis The Palm, Dubai 58-57 and lift the Synergy Sports’ Inter-Hotel Basketball Tournament Cup at Al Twar 2 Sports Hall.

Conrad dictated the tempo of the match in the first half where they established a 10-point lead, 25-15, after the first 10 minutes and maintained a substantial lead, 40-33, at the half.

They, however, turned cold in the third quarter and had a meagre four-point production to capitulate the lead to Atlantis, who were led by the duo of Kenyan players Agrey Odhiambo and Allan Omondi.

Conrad trailed by seven points, 57-50, with only two minutes left in the game but they denied Atlantis to score another point because of their suffocating defence as JC Morales, who was declared Finals MVP, and Season MVP Philipp Villanueva took turns in making baskets to secure the championship trophy.

Morales led Conrad with 17 points followed by Villanueva with 14 while Steve Olweny, who was elected to the Mythical 5 First Team, and Sixth Man of the Tournament Awardee Harold Abonitalla added 11 and eight markers respectively.

“Basketball is a game of spurts and every second counts,” Conrad team manager Victor Chalfoun told Sport3600. “We were up in the first half and we were down going into the final minutes of the game but we did not give up and we made a good rally until the final buzzer.”

“Lifting the Cup is very sweet because all our hard work has paid off. What made it sweeter is that we never lost a single game in the tournament.”

“We’ve been practicing twice a week doing suicide drills which kept our spirits high. We also maintained a good work-life balance and we got overwhelming support from our families, friends and colleagues,” added Chalfoun.

Individual awards

Finals MVP – JC Morales
Season MVP – Philipp Villanueva
Mythical 5 First Team –Morales, Villanueva, Steve Olweny, Alexis Tito, Edmar Lelis
Mythical 5 Second Team – Victor Chalfoun, Gregory Odera, Agrey Odhiambo, Gracer Torres, Rontgen Abando
Sixth Man of the Tournament – Harold Abonitalla
Best Coach – Manuel Kuong
Best Team Managers – Alice Pavageau and Mohanad Zarouq

Scorers
Conrad Dubai 58 – JC Morales 17; Philipp Villanueva 14; Steve Olweny 11; Harold Abonitalla 8; Roland Mahalong 5; Victor Chalfoun 3

Atlantis The Palm, Dubai 57 – Allan Omondi 11; Agrey Odhiambo 10; Alexis Tito 10; Fernando Louis Durmiendo 8; Willy dela Cruz 7; Edmar Lelis 7; Roy Siquiang 4