Story and photos by REDintern Low Zheng Yu
Mabel Anton (SCGS #10) goes for the fast-break layup. She scored a game high 18 points. (Photo 1 © Low Zheng Yu/Red Sports)
OCBC Arena, Monday, February 21, 2017 — Singapore Chinese Girls’ School (SCGS) made use of their suffocating half court press defense to secure a 41-21 victory over Ahmad Ibrahim Secondary (AI) in the North Zone B Division Basketball Girls Championship.
With this win, SCGS have a perfect 8-0 win-loss record since Round 1. They will advance to the semi-finals as the winnerof Group B.
This loss meant the end of the season for Ahmad Ibrahim. They had lost to Yishun Town 22-47 previously and attained a 29-6 victory over Seng Kang.
SCGS wasted no time after the ball was tipped. They got to work and set up their half court press to stop Ahmad Ibrahim from advancing the ball. This forced several turnovers which allowed fast-break opportunities for SCGS.
Despite the opportunities, SCGS were off at the start and missed many of their fast-break attempts.
Unaffected, Nadia Ghani (SCGS #9), a defensive presence for SCGS, got even more aggressive and active on her defense. She brought up the overall intensity of the SCGS defense and continued to force turnovers.
SCGS defense also prevented open shots for Ahmad Ibrahim. Failing to find an open shooter, Ahmad Ibrahim were not able to get the shot off before the shot clock expired. This led to turnovers and SCGS took the opportunity to widen the score once again.
While Ahmad Ibrahim were shooting well from three, they could not reduce the deficit.
As turnovers piled up for Ahmad Ibrahim, SCGS started to find their groove from the fast-break opportunities.
They started making their layups and shots. Mabel Anton (SCGS #10) took advantage of her height to score many easy baskets. She led her team with a game-high 18 points.
Due to the suffocating defense SCGS played, they went on to win the game 41-21.
SCGS captain, Patricia Orenza (SCGS #7), said, “I think us staying perfect with the win-loss record wouldn’t be possible if we didn’t play together. We’d probably be losing but it’s just the fact that we play as one and we have our coach to guide us that we are able to pull through.
“For this game, I think our defense got faster and I think our box out is much stronger.”
“We will definitely try our best for our semis, whoever we are up against.”
Team captain of Ahmad Ibrahim, Marilyn Yap (AI #8), said, “Our defense for this game was faster than usual, however our communication and chemistry needs to be worked on.”
Her teammate, Dania Ervianny Nah (AI #4), added, “Our score difference was sixty something to two last year. We improved a lot since last year. It was a tough fight but we will improve again and come back stronger next year.”
Scoring by Quarter
SCGS vs Ahmad Ibrahim
1st Q: 14-8
2nd Q: 11-5 (25-13)
3rd Q: 9-5 (34-18)
4th Q: 7-3 (41-21)
Top Scorers
SCGS
Mabel Anton (#10) – 18 pts
Patricia Orenza (#7) – 12 pts
Ahmad Ibrahim
Dania Ervianny Nah (#4) – 9 pts
Germaine Tan Yi Xing (#6) – 8 pts
SCGS Roster
Clarice Lee (#4), Haziera Hairudinsah (#5), Tay Jin Ting (#6), Patricia Orenza (#7), Angela Wang (#8), Nadia Ghani (#9), Mabel Anton (#10), Dylen Serrano (#11), Margaret Suriya (#12), Freda Wee (#13), Lee Yan (#14), Lee Fang Yu (#15)
Ahmad Ibrahim Roster
Dania Ervianny Nah (#4), Chang Wai Chain (#5), Germaine Tan Yi Xing (#6), Amanda Ong Lexuan (#7), Marilyn Yap Shushan (#8), Nur Hairunnishah (#9), Kristel Tan (#11), Nurul Syarfikha (#12), Valerie (#13), Aw Kai Ling (#14), Chloe Toh (#15)
More photos next page
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