Story by REDintern Chan Hua Zheng. Photos by REDintern Dylan Chua.

Canberra #2 attempts a 3-point jumper against Riverside. (Photo © REDintern Dylan Chua)

Jovan (CS #2) attempts a 3-point jumper against Riverside. (Photo 1 © REDintern Dylan Chua)

Singapore Basketball Centre, Wednesday, January 27, 2016 — Canberra Secondary (CS) outdueled Riverside Secondary (RS) 70-40 for their third victory in the preliminary round, boosting their chances for a 2nd round appearance in the North Zone B Division Basketball Championship.

Dion (#35) led Canberra to victory with a game-high 17 points, with three teammates also in double digits. Riverside’s #6 led his team with 13 points, with #15 and #12 chipping in 7 points and 5 points respectively.

With this win, Canberra improved to a 3-2 win-loss record in the preliminary round, with their hopes for a ticket to the 2nd round hinging on the result of the match between Catholic High and Pei Hwa.

Riverside’s season ended with a 0-5 record after the loss.
Canberra came out of the gate with a 6-0 run. Lockdown defense resulted in turnovers and forced shots taken by Riverside, earning Canberra easy fastbreak points.

Riverside managed to break their scoring drought affter four minutes with two free throws by #6. On offense, Canberra attacked the paint aggressively for high percentage shots and led 18-6 at the end of the first quarter.

Riverside came into the 2nd quarter with an agressive mentality, where they relentlessly attacked the paint on offense. They were rewarded when they drew first blood in the quarter on a free throw by #6.

However, Canberra’s tight defense continued to force turnovers by Riverside. Furthemore, Canberra turned up a notch on offense with fluid ball movement which earned them easy and open shots. Canberra outscored Riverside 22-10 in the quarter, pulling away to lead 40-16 as the half ended.

It was more of the same after the halftime break, where Canberra outscored Riverside 22-11 due to their lockdown defense and aggressive offense. Riverside’s struggles on offense prompted a timeout with a minute left in the quarter.

Riverside seemed to be inspired after the timeout, where they found their groove offensively and showed some fluid ball movement on offense without turning the ball over.

Riverside continued to ride on their new found momentum in the fourth quarter, where they locked up defensively and continued their fluid offense while minimising turnovers.

Despite the large deficit, Riverside showed heart and hustled on every possession. At the seven minute mark of the quarter, they scored back to back 3-pointers through #8 and #6. On the following possession, Riverside’s #7 busted out an impressive up-and-under move for a reverse layup to cap off a 8-0 run.

Despite outscoring Canberra 13-8 in the closing period, Riverside’s comeback proved to be too late as they fell 40-70 to Canberra.

Score by Quarter
Canberra vs Riverside
1st Quarter: 18-6
2nd Quarter: 22-10 (40-16)
3rd Quarter: 22-11 (62-27)
4th Quarter: 8-13 (70-40)

Top Scorers
Canberra
Dion (#35) – 17 points
Jovan (#2) – 13 points
Ken (#10) – 12 points

Riverside
#6 – 13 points
#15 – 7 points
#12 – 5 points

Riverside Roster
Jun Rong (#4), Guan Yu (#5), Rek Wong (#6), Ryan(#7), Ng Wei Xuan (#8), Hansel Woo (#9), You Qian (#10), Zafri (#11), Jaren Wong (#12), Mirza (#13), Ming Yuan (#14), Wong Hoong Liang (#15)

Canberra Roster
Jovan (#2), Minoza Jzan (#3), Angelo (#8), Jia Soon (#9), Ken (#10), Wayne (#11), Naz (#12), Adil (#13), Shilin (#15), Nicholas (#24), Dion (#35), Wei Sheng (#99)

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