Singapore Slingers vs Satria Muda BritAma game analysis: Local lads take up scoring load

By Ian Chew. Photos by Lai Jun Wei

Singapore Indoor Stadium, Sunday, November 1, 2009 – An incredible Singapore Slingers scoring blitz in the first half led to the biggest ever margin of victory for the home team this season in the ASEAN Basketball League (ABL).

Slingers Desmond Oh, Wong Wei Long, Hong Wei Jian and Michael LeBlanc all connected for six of seven attempts from the 3-point line to whitewash the visiting Indonesian team Satria Muda BritAma 53-26 by halftime.

Even Satria Muda’s American import Alexander Hartman could not believe his eyes.

“I have played in many games throughout my career but I have never seen anything like what the Slingers did tonight. A thirty to forty per cent conversion rate from the 3-point line would be considered good in any game. However, the (Slinger) guys were shooting an amazing sixty per cent!”

“I guess we will have to tighten our defense and guard their forwards much more closely when we face them again,” said Hartman, who was also the top-scorer for the game with 28 points.

Slingers head coach Frank Arsego had a simple answer for that.

“We practiced for it,” he explained.

Yet what was more pleasing for Frank was the way the local lads picked up the scoring tag, especially after Al Vergara’s injury scare.

“I really felt our local boys have stepped up in these few games. My instruction for them was to create more shot opportunities and they did just that in this game,” he said.

Match Verdict
No team can possibly recover from such a shooting spree shown by the Slingers in the first quarter where they were perfect from the 3-point line (6/6). The massive 30-point production in the first quarter set the stage for the Slingers to go on for a big win over the Indonesian team.

If the visitors were hoping that the Slingers would cool off in the next few quarters, they were sorely mistaken. The Slingers continued their barrage of points throughout the match, which must have completely altered the game plan of Satria Muda who were playing catch-up for the whole of the game.

A full court zonal defense in the second half by Satria Muda failed to stem the Slingers tide. In the end, the game between the top two teams in the league turned out to be a no-contest as the Slingers went on to record a 96-72 victory.

Team Verdict
One notable aspect that stood out for the Slingers in the game was the balanced scoring output. In particular, Desmond Oh, Wei Long and Wei Jian combined for 33 points to share the scoring load for the team. This will only serve to increase the offensive threat of the team and confidence of the local players.

The Slingers are also getting used to differing styles of zonal defences thrown at them by the different teams. They would still require more match practices to cut down the number of turnovers made when playing against such defenses.

Players Verdict
Aside from the rebounding prowess of Kyle Jeffers and offensive talent of Michael LeBlanc, the ones that displayed significant improvements were the three local lads Hong Wei Jian, Wong Wei Long and Desmond Oh. All three showed a determination to contribute towards the team, which translated to the creating and making of shot attempts.

Marcus Ng may not have enjoyed a high scoring game with a six-point output for the game, but an underrated aspect of his game is his rebounding skills. His willingness to fight for the loose ball meant that he came away with eight rebounds, an impressive number for a forward and certainly a crucial statistic for the team.

One player that certainly enjoyed the experience of the game must be Prasad Sadasivan. Handed his first entry into the Slingers team, he stayed calm enough to convert his only opportunity for a memorable basket.

Conclusion
The Singapore Indoor Stadium is proving a fortress for the Slingers, where they have reserved some of their most spectacular performances so far in the ABL.

Yet they can certainly expect a hostile atmosphere at their next two consecutive away games in Philippines and Indonesia, which will put their mental fortitude to the test.

One can expect close contests for both matches quite unlike the one seen on Sunday. A win from the next two away games will represent a good achievement for the Slingers.

View first quarter highlights:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRrhGX60Eyo

View second quarter highlights:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQeApQ9Y8qc

View third quarter highlights:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MmyyA4QEu8M

View fourth quarter highlights:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnTsGCTHBwc

View fourth quarter highlights with all-Singaporean team with 1:30 to go:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sd-hcCs1lYw

Singapore Slingers 2009/10 ABL schedule