One-sided affair as Unity beat Hwa Chong in B Division basketball

Story and pictures by REDintern Alan Chiang

Jurong West Sports Hall, Friday, April 17, 2009 - A full-strength Unity Secondary overcame a depleted Hwa Chong Institution 55-48 in a National B Division Basketball Championship quarter-final match.

Both teams came into the match after having lost their opening matches against Eastern powerhouses Anglican High and Dunman Secondary respectively. Needing a win to boost their advances to the next round, Unity showed true grit and style as they ran riot in the early periods of the match. Moreover, Unity boasted a full squad while Hwa Chong had only eight outfield players.

Wei Xiang (Unity, #14) and Jing Yi (Unity, #6) combined well with a total of 30 points as they spearheaded the offense with ease.

After claiming the tip-off, Unity did not look back as they adopted fast break tactics to exploit Hwa Chong's slow recovery rate at the defense line. The first quarter belonged to Unity at 13-9.

The start of the second quarter saw Unity break into an 8-0 run with Wei Xiang (Unity, #14) dominating the offensive board and points in the paint. It was all smooth-sailing for Unity in the second quarter.

Hwa Chong tried to spark an effort to hit back at Unity with Henry's (HCI, #5) influential calls on the court. Their efforts paid off as Unity were reduced to only a three-point 38-35 lead at the end of the third quarter.

However, HCI ran out of steam as their bench players could not match Unity's strong offensive plays. Unity managed to extend their lead and won the match with ease.

Unity will need a win against Anglican High in order to qualify for the semi-finals and hope that Hwa Chong can overcome Dunman Secondary in their next match.

Match Statistics

Quarter-by-quarter scores
1st Q: HCI 9 : Unity 13
2nd Q: HCI 15 : Unity 26
3rd Q: HCI 35 : Unity 38
4th Q: HCI 48 : Unity 55

Leading scorers
HCI
Yuan Ming (#4) - 14 points
Lai Sheng (# 7) - 12 points

Unity
Wei Xiang (#14) - 17 points
Jing Yi (#6) - 13 points