JEDDAH — Ittihad and Fath advanced to the Saudi Basketball Federation Championships 2014 final here Tuesday. Fath defeated Ohud 70-61 in a fast-paced game. Fath took the lead and stayed on top with its fast-break style. Fath point-guard Mohammed Sagaf kept his team running, never giving Ohud a chance to set up its defense and get stops. In the other semifinal Ittihad beat Ansar 72-69. The two were facing one another for the third time in two weeks. Ansar had edged out Ittihad in the league final. On Tuesday, Ittihad got into trouble early and was down by 6 points by the end of the first period. Ansar was up by 9 at the half. Ittihad struggled, but somehow managed to come within three (48-51) points of Ansar before the quarter ended. The final period saw the lead change hands four times before the game went into overtime. In extra-time it was all Ittihad scoring first with Ansar responding. Ittihad pulled ahead by three and finally won 72-69. Fath had beaten Ittihad in the first round of the playoffs in overtime. In a championship game, however, there are no second chances.
