On May 23th, 2014, hundreds of spectators lined up to witness the top 16 Basketball talents from Kuwait compete at the Marina Basketball court for the prestigious title of Red Bull King of the Rock.
In the final, both players Ali Al Mahmoud and Mohamed Al Zamel were tired from their semifinals match. The game was not decided until Ali scored two points in the last 20 seconds of the overtime.
With this win, Al Mahmoud will now represent Kuwait at the World Finals which will be held at Samasana Island on September 6. He will be competing against 31 additional finalists that have earned their way to the finals through other qualifiers across the world.
“The competition was very tough especially in the last rounds. The final was only decided in the final seconds of the overtime. I’m glad that I have reached the world final. I will now train hard and hopefully I can have a positive result.” said Ali Al Mahmoud.
It’s the third year of the tournament in Kuwait, where the half-court games are held at the famous Marina Basketball Courts. Last year the event was won by Mubarak Al Marzouk.
128 players participated in two qualifiers and only the top 16 made it to the final. Games last five minutes and were subject to regulation hoops rules and scoring (two and three pointers). The qualifier was open to amateur and pros alike.
Now in its fifth year, King of the Rock is back and promises to be better than ever with some of the world’s best players converging upon Samasana on September 6, 2014.
