Story by Jasmine Goh/Red Sports. Photos by Clara Yuan/Red Sports
Cai Yi Fan (CTS #6) driving the ball upcourt. Yi Fan finished with a game-high 18 points. (Photo 1 © Clara Yuan/Red Sports)
Jurong West Sports Hall, Wednesday, January 28, 2014 — Hong Kah Secondary (HKS) held on in overtime to defeat Clementi Town Secondary (CTS) 51–41 in the preliminary round of the West Zone B Division Basketball Championship.
Clementi Town staged a comeback with less than a minute remaining in regulation time to stun Hong Kah, as they went from being 12 points down to go into overtime.
Cai Yi Fan (CTS #6) finished with a game-high 18 points, while John Almond Palma (HKS #10) paced his team with 14 points.
The game was fairly intense with multiple lead changes at the start. Andrievsky Anton (CTS #11) opened the scoring for Clementi Town with three quick points. Kelvin Toh (HKS #7) managed to score a three pointer with less than 30 seconds to play to give Hong Kah a 13–8 lead at the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter commenced with Donovan Lee (HKS #12) converting free throws to extend Hong Kah’s lead to 17–14. Hong Kah worked hard to close down their opponents quickly on court. With a 12-point deficit at the end of the first half, the Clementi Town coach called a timeout to get his team back in action.
Clementi Town eventually worked their way back in contention with their tenacity in defence and ruthlessness on the ball. Clementi Town outscored Hong Kah 11–9 to trail 24–34 at the end of the third quarter.
During the final quarter, Clementi Town mounted a comeback with their strong teamwork and excellent ball movement. The defensive presence of Zeng Haixin (HKS #7) forced several turnovers. The game continued to heat up as the players became increasingly physical.
Cai Yi Fan (#6) stepped up for Clementi Town, cutting through the middle of the paint, absorbing contact to make the shot and got himself sent to the free throw line for the bonus. He displayed remarkable composure as he drained the free throw that led his team to overtime with 7.3 seconds left.
In the overtime period, Clementi Town’s efforts came to naught as John Almond Palma (HKS #10) went on a scoring streak towards the end, allowing Hong Kah to pull ahead by six points. CTS continued to put up an admirable team effort both offensively and defensively as the seconds ticked by. They did not stop trying until the eventual moment, where it was too large a deficit for the team to overcome. Hong Kah went on to take the game 51–41.
Hong Kah’s captain, Chan Zhi Xiang (#11) said, “We were a little disappointed that we went into overtime as we were leading throughout the first half. However, we played better than our previous games today and I think everyone did their best.”
“We lost the game in the first half. The boys were too nervous, coupled with a few poor decisions on my part,” said Clementi Town’s coach, Lim Yong Teck. “This game meant a lot to them, and they played their hearts out in the second half. Watching the second-half effort from the boys was heartwarming, and I’m proud of them nonetheless.”
Scoring by Quarter
Hong Kah vs Clementi Town
1Q: 13–8
2Q: 12–5 (25–13)
3Q: 9–11 (34–24)
4Q: 6–16 (40–40)
5Q: 11–1 (51–41)
Top Scorers
Hong Kah
John Almond Palma (#10) – 14 points (2 x 3-pointers)
Clementi Town
Cai Yi Fan (#16) – 18 points
Hong Kah Secondary Roster
Peng Hsin Chih (#4), Eugene Lim Soo Chin (#5), Alson Lim Jing Zhong (#6), Kelvin Toh Xin Hong (#7), Jaren Yap Ming Xuan (#8), Owen Albert De Guzman (#9), John Almond Palma (#10), Chan Zhi Xiang (#11), Donovan Lee Zhi Peng (#12), Cliff Mak Jun Hao (#13), Chen Yun (#14), Cheng Xin Poh (#15)
Clementi Town Secondary Roster
Alexander Umesh Prabhu (#4), Klein Yancy Sia Umali (#5), Cai Yi Fan (#6), Zeng Haixin (#7), Tan Ze Jun (#8), Jeff Lloyd Escanuela (#9), Brian Chua Ting Hui (#10), Andrievsky Anton (#11), Yu Jia Jun (#12), Andre Victor B. Mania (#13), Jomaica Chong (#14), Liu Shulong (#15)
2015 West Zone B Division Basketball Championship – fixtures and results
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