AYG FIBA 33 Basketball: Singapore girls virtually out after loss to India

Story by Alan Chiang/Red Sports. Photos by Koh Yizhe/Red Sports and Vanessa Lim/Red Sports.

Anglican High School, Thursday, July 2, 2009 - Strong crowd support was not enough to lift the spirits of Singapore as they ran out of steam late in the game, losing to India 29-25 in the Asian Youth Games Basketball competition.

Singapore had several chances to gain a permanent foothold in the game but several turnovers and missed baskets allowed India to break away with ease.

India's Loganathan Suganya (#6) was red-hot beyond the 3-point line, and the Singapore players had a tough time containing her throughout the match. She finished with 18 points to lead her team.

Singapore's own top scorer, Hannah Ng (#9), had an excellent game with 13 points but it was not enough to nick a win from under the noses of their opponents.

lLoganathan scored the first two points of the game for India but Singapore tied it up at 2-2. But India took their chances well and went on a 5-0 run.

Our girls found their feet and a 6-2 run by them towards the end of the first period ensured they trailed only by a single point.

As the game went into the second period, Singapore enjoyed a slender 2-point lead with Hannah and Hui Min (#7) sharing the spoils. However, India broke out powerfully with back-to-back shots and managed to regain the lead at 18-15.

Full excitement kicked in only during the final period as Singapore managed to turn on the heat in the opening minutes and wrestled the lead back at 20-18. But India's Loganathan (#6), the ruthless executor, scored a crucial 3-point basket as the lead swung back and forth.

Better defense and communication allowed Singapore to tie the game eventually at 25-25 before Loganathan proved again, in the final seconds, that she was the prominent player on court. She scored four straight points to help India clinch a victory off the host.

Singapore’s captain, Sharlene Huang (#13), was frustrated that they didn’t take their chances as a team. She said, "We were playing quite well but our shots just didn't go in (the basket)."

With reference to yesterday’s match against China, she said, "Our defence is definitely a lot better against India but still, we need to reflect on our play."

Her knee injury certainly took a toll on her performance at the Asian Youth Games. She explained, "It has certainly reduced my agility and speed but I will try my best."

Chiang Chih Ning, the Singapore coach said after the game, "We are disappointed as we had the chance to win the match."

On her decision not to double-team Loganathan, India's top scorer, she said, "I think there's no point to double-team a significant player as we may lose out even more."

She mentioned about Singapore's training schedules prior to the Asian Youth Games, "The Singapore team does not have enough training due to the struggle between studies and sports."

She added, "They only have the chance to train 1 to 2 times a week during school days and managed to increase to 4 times a week closer to the Games."

"In order to do well in sports, we need to focus on sports professionally rather than to juggle with studies as well," she commented on the rigid timetables among all schools.

The team reserved their comments as they felt "tired" after the match. The last match against Bahrain will be the only chance left to redeem some pride and to reward the fans for their support.

Match statistics
Scores by period
1st: SIN 8 IND 9
2nd: SIN 7 IND 9
3rd: SIN 10 IND 10

Scorers
SIN
Hannah Ng (#9) - 13 points
Tok Hui Min (#7) - 8 points
Nicole Lau (#11) - 4 points

IND
Loganthan Suganya (#6) - 18 points
Rajaganvipathi Rajapriyadharsan (#5) - 9 points
Kaur Ranjeeta (#4) - 2 points