Presbyterian High thrash Northland Secondary for second win in Round 2 of B Division North Zone basketball

Story by REDIntern Alan Chiang, Photos by Vanessa Lim/Red Sports.

Singapore Basketball Centre, Friday, February 20, 2009 - Presbyterian High were made to work hard by Northland Secondary but still managed to clinch their second win 74-21 in round 2 of the boys' B Division North Zone basketball Championship.

Northland, having lost to Chung Cheng High (Yishun) earlier, were seeking their first win against Presbyterian High but the presence of Russel Low (PHS #5) leading the pack meant an uphill task.

Presbyterian High started the match brightly as they won the tip-off with ease. With most of the Presbyterian High plays centred on the 1.93m Russel (PHS #5), Northland set four players to defend him.

Their efforts proved fruitless as Presbyterian broke to 12-2 after six minutes in the first quarter. Russel (PHS #5) and Bing Yao (PHS #6) continued to work perfectly in the paint as they contributed 10 and 6 points respectively.

Xiuxing (NSS #11) attempted to reduce the lead as he drained two 3-pointers and Presbyterian HIgh only managed a 6-point, 16-10 lead going into the first break.

Presbyterian managed to take control of the match in the second quarter as they tightened their defense and drove to the basket forcefully. They went on a 9-2 run and the lead was up at 13 points.

However, Xiuxing (NSS #11) refused to concede defeat easily and answered with a big shot from the 3-point line. As the Northland tactic was to pack the paint, they left Presbyterian's shooters to make free shots and Jonathan (PHS #7) gladly obliged with a 3-pointer to extend the lead to 17 points. Presbyterian High did not look back and went into the half-time break leading 36-17.

Presbyterian High began the third quarter without Russel (PHS #5) but they still strung together a 12-0 run and took the lead to as high as 31 points. Yao Ming (PHS #8) overtook the scoring throne and achieved a standout performance with 11 points in the third quarter, with three shots coming from the 3-point line.

Northland's only two points in the third quarter came from Fu Quan (NSS #7) who broke the scoring drought only after 5:55 of play.

Northland commenced the last quarter strongly with Yuhao (NSS #15) making two consecutive blocks in the paint to deny Presbyterian High from attacking the basket easily. Nonetheless, it was Presbyterian High, who were now playing their reserves, that prevailed as they seized their chances whenever they got the ball. It was smooth sailing for Presbyterian High towards the end of the quarter and they finished with a 74-21 rout of Northland.

Presbyterian High will now look forward to their next match against Seng Kang Secondary who won their first match earlier against Yishun Secondary. Northland Secondary may have to wave goodbye to their zonal campaign if they do not overcome Yishun Secondary and Seng Kang Secondary in their next two matches.

Match Statistics:
Scores by quarter
1st Q: PHS 16 - NSS 10
2nd Q: PHS 36 - NSS 17
3rd Q: PHS 57 - NSS 19
4th Q: PHS 74 - NSS 21

Top scorer
PHS
Russel Low (#5) - 16 points
Yao Ming (#8) - 13 points

NSS
Xiuxing (#11) - 11 points
Fu Quan (#7) - 6 points

Editor's note: If you recognise yourself or your teammates in any of the photos, feel free to leave the names behind in the comments section and we will update accordingly. Thanks!