Story and photos by Low Zheng Yu/Red Sports
Owen Liow (WS #11) with the free throw attempt. He led all scorers with a game-high 26 points. (Photo 1 © Low Zheng Yu/Red Sports)
Clementi Sports Hall, Friday, March 24, 2017 — Woodgrove Secondary’s (WS) size proved too much for Dunman High (DH) to handle as they secured a 75-57 victory in the National B Division Basketball Championship.
With this win, Woodgrove have a win-loss record of 2-1 and top Group A. They lost to Bukit Panjang Government High previously and beat Anglo-Chinese School (Barker Road).
Woodgrove will face North Vista Secondary, Unity Secondary, and Fairfield Methodist School in Round 2.
This loss gives Dunman High a similar 2-1 win-loss record but they finish second due to a points difference. They will face Jurong West Secondary, Christ Church Secondary, and Presbyterian High in Round 2.
Woodgrove got the tip at the start. With a simple high-low offense, Andy Liow (WS #14) sealed his defender and made the easy under-basket.
Unfazed, Dunman High retaliated with a fast-break to tie things up.
However, Owen Liow (WS #11) made another easy open under-basket after sealing his defender.
Other than that, Woodgrove’s size allowed them to grab offensive boards easily after the outside shooters had missed their shots. This gave Woodgrove many easy put-back points.
Despite that, Dunman High made use of their three-point shooting to keep the score close. They made two three-point shots to cut the lead Woodgrove had to just five points.
Woodgrove were up 19-14 after the first quarter.
In the second quarter, Woodgrove continued to dominate on their offensive boards. These created second chances for offense which Woodgrove capitalized on.
Other than that, they also did well on their defensive end. They disrupted Dunman High’s rhythm by closing up fast on the shooters so that there were no clean looks.
Woodgrove pulled away, ending the first half with a 34-20 lead.
In the third quarter, Woodgrove continued to dominate with their inside and outside game. The centers drew the bulk of the defense which led to open looks for the shooters outside. Woodgrove capitalize on that to knock down shots.
Not letting the poor second quarter affect them, Dunman High came out of the half with fighting spirit. They got into a groove early and made their open jumpers and layups.
Matthew Ho (DH #4) scored six straight points for Dunman High in an attempt to cut the Woodgrove lead.
Despite Dunman High finding the rhythm to score, they simply had no answer for the twin towers of Woodgrove.
The centers of Woodgrove continued scoring at will and making plays for their teammates after grabbing offensive boards. This led to balanced scoring from all players on the floor.
Woodgrove eventually cruised past Dunman High 75-57 as both teams advanced to Round 2.
Captain Andy Liow (WS #14) of Woodgrove said, “We followed our coach’s instructions and managed to slow down their (Dunman High) three-point. Although first half, they managed to score some threes, we focused our mindsets on the second half and managed to drop their three-point percentage by 30-40 percent.”
“Also our second string players managed to step up and knocked down some threes which helped a lot for our centers to get offensive rebound as they pull out the defense.”
“I think today’s team atmosphere was very good. Although one of our main center Chun Jack is down, our other players were able to step up and take over his place. This helped a lot. Let’s hope he can recover and join us soon.”
Vice captain Darren Pay (DH #6) of Dunman High commented, “We couldn’t contain the two big guys well, and then when the shot was hoisted, we didn’t box out well which led to very bad rebounding on our part.”
“However, we gotta give credit to Woodgrove for making their shots.”
Scoring by Quarter
Woodgrove vs Dunman High
1st Q: 19-14
2nd Q: 15-6 (34-20)
3rd Q: 21-17 (55-37)
4th Q: 20-20 (75-57)
Top Scorers
Woodgrove
Liow Cheng Xun Owen (#11) – 26 pts
Dunman High
Avner Tan (#5) – 10 pts
Zachary Gan (#11) – 9 pts
Woodgrove Roster
Ping Wen (#3), Edwin Soo Ian Zhang (#4), Chong Shao Kai, Sky (#5), Lacsado Jack William Santiago (#7), Seah Jin Yong (#8), Chen Pengkun (#9), Yap Chun Jack (#10), Liow Cheng Xun Owen (#11), Andy Lim Jia En (#12), Soh Keng Yip (#13), Liow Cheng Lin Andy (#14), Fang Hanbin (#15)
Dunman High School Roster
Matthew Ho (#4), Avner Tan (#5), Darren Pay (#6), Jonathan Goh (#7), Kinczel Tan (#8), Nicholas Soh (#9), Colin Ho (#10), Zachary Gan (#11), Leong Ee Hao (#12), Jovan Teong (#13), Huang Shun (#14), Yong Wei (#15)
More photos next page
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