Story by Jiexin Neo/Red Sports. Photos by Lim Yong Teck/Red Sports
Johrathon Cheok (HCI #9) controls the ball against Han Jun Seo (AJC #5). (Photo 1 © Lim Yong Teck/Red Sports)
Singapore Basketball Centre, Monday, May 12, 2014 — Hwa Chong Institution (HCI) pulled away in the final quarter to beat Anderson Junior College (AJC) 47–37, thus finishing top of their second round group in the National A Division Boys Basketball Championship.
With this win, HCI remain undefeated heading into the semi-finals. They will face Pioneer Junior College on Wednesday, May 14 at the Singapore Basketball Centre at 1:30pm. In the other semi-final game, AJC will face Raffles Institution in the adjacent court.
Yap Teng Suan (HCI #6) paced his team with 15 points, while Brian Wong (AJC #7) had a team-high eight points.
Johrathon Cheok (HCI #9) drove in for the first two points. Thereafter, Brian Wong (AJC #7) scored one on the elbow to level at 2–2. The lead exchanged hands several times throughout the first quarter as both teams appeared to be evenly-matched. The first quarter ended off with a tie (10–10).
In the second quarter, Yap Teng Suan (HCI #6) finished strong on layups to put in points for his side. For AJC, Muhammad Zulhaziq (#9) netted threes while Tee Chai Sim (#15) went on determined drives, both consistently adding on to the scoreboard. HCI were trailing 16–19, but Johrathon (HCI #9) came in towards the end to make a difference, scoring two consecutive shots to put HCI 20–19 up. Tan Jun (HCI #8) scored on a fast break to end the first half 22–19.
Fan Yiheng (HCI #10) pulled down a couple of rebounds to start off the third quarter for his team. The scores continued to be neck and neck as the teams alternated at scoring. HCI reverted efficiently from full-court press to play condensed defence, denying AJC’s attempts in the paint. On the other hand, Jason Lee (AJC #6) led his team with diligent defence to put constant pressure onto the HCI side. The third quarter ended with HCI taking on a slight 28–27 lead.
Early into the decisive final quarter, HCI were struggling to find the range with most of their shots, but found their touch midway through the game to score mostly from outside the paint. HCI were leading 33–32 when they scored 12 unanswered points to push their lead to 45–32, thus giving themselves some breathing room over AJC. HCI’s dominance towards the end stunned their opponents as they concluded the game with a 47–37 win.
HCI captain, Johrathon (#9) said, “Basically, a win is good. So there are still two more games to go, we have to fight harder. We all did a decent job today, but there are still a few problems that we have to rectify.”
Scoring by Quarter
HCI vs AJC
1Q: 10–10
2Q: 12–9 (22–19)
3Q: 6–8 (28–27)
4Q: 19–10 (47–37)
Final score: 47–37
Top Scorers
HCI
Yap Teng Suan (#6) – 15 points (1 x 3 pointer)
Johrathon Cheok (#9) – 8 points
AJC
Brian Wong (#7) – 8 points
Han Jun Seo (#5) – 6 points
Muhammad Zulhaziq (#9) – 6 points (2 x 3 pointer)
Hwa Chong Institution Roster
Mitch Lim Yong Tat (#4), Dylan Chua Yee Kiat (#5), Yap Teng Suan (#6), Ng Zheng Qin (#7), Tan Jun (#8), Johrathon Cheok Er Wen (#9), Fan Yiheng (#10), Ong Sze Chuan (#11), Loh Wan Yuan (#12), Lee Yee Kai Darryl (#13), Tan Aik (#14), Yeo Wen Jie (#15)
Anderson Junior College Roster
Moe Han (#4), Han Jun Seo (#5), Lee Wei Hern Jason (#6), Wong Liang Hao Brian (#7), Sherman Soh Jun Hao (#8), Muhammad Zulhaziq B Azman (#9), Teo Ting Wei Wesley (#10), Ong Ngiap Meng Max (#11), Chong Yih Xuan (#12), Chia Wen Han (#13), Liang Bingxin (#14), Tee Chai Sim (#15)
National A Division Boys Basketball Championship — Fixtures and Results
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