Story by Chan Hua Zheng/Red Sports. Photos by Dylan Chua/Red Sports.

Ethel Tan (RGS #3) on a drive to the basket. She bagged a game-high 16 points despite the defeat to NJC. (Photo 1 © Dylan Chua/Red Sports)

Ethel Tan (RGS #3) on a drive to the basket. She bagged a game-high 16 points despite the defeat to NJC. (Photo 1 © Dylan Chua/Red Sports)

Delta Sports Hall, Monday, February 26, 2018 — National Junior College (NJC) cruised to a 79–45 victory over Raffles Girls’ School (RGS) in the South Zone B Division Basketball Semi-finals to book a final showdown against Guangyang Secondary.

Rachel Tan (12) led NJC with a team-high 12 points in a match that saw NJC lead from start to finish to seal the convincing victory.

Despite the loss, Ethel Tan (#3) led RGS with a valiant 16-point outing.

With a final appearance on the line, both sides came out with a full court press in a bid to force each other into turnovers for easy fast-break points.

While both sides executed well on defense, it was NJC that executed their offensive game-plan at a higher level as they sliced-and-diced RGS’ full court defense with quick and accurate while making sharp cuts to shake off the defense.

RGS, on the other hand, struggled to break free of NJC’s suffocating full court press, where they often found themselves turning the ball over off their dribble and mistimed passes. They also found themselves struggling to create scoring opportunities in their half-court sets and resorted to forcing up tough contested shots.

At the end of the first period, the scoreline was 20–3 in NJC’s favour.

The second quarter saw RGS finding their groove on offense, as they started to adapt to NJC’s full court press and were able to create and convert good open shots in semi-transition and half-court sets. Ethel Tan (#3) was a spark on the offensive end for RGS, scoring 8 of her 16 points in the quarter.

However, RGS was still unable to slow down NJC on the defensive end as they conceded 19 points to enter the half time break down 19–39.

RGS would turn in their best quarter in the game after the half-time break, where they locked up and trapped on defense to force NJC into tornovers for fast-break points. RGS also caught fire from beyond arc, making three of their five 3-point field goals to out score NJC 18–10 in the period to make it 37–49.

RGS had the momentum of the game heading into the final period after shaving 15 points off their 27-point deficit in the first quarter and a RGS comeback was not impossible.

However, fatigue seemed to catch up to the RGS players, as they gradually started to make careless turnovers and were unable to get back on defense quickly.

NJC would turn up a gear on both ends of the floor in the final period and essentially snuff out any hopes of a RGS comeback by pouring in a whopping 30 points while allowing RGS to score only eight.

At the final buzzer, NJC would walk off with a 79–45 victory for a shot at the title in the finals against Guangyang Secondary while RGS will have to contend for the 3rd position against St Margaret’s in the 3rd/4th placing match.

The 3rd/4th placing match will take place on 28 Feb at 1.00pm while the final will be held on 1 March at 1.00 pm. Both matches will be held at Delta Sports Hall.

Scoring by Quarter
NJC vs RGS
1st Q: 20–3
2nd Q: 19–16 (39–19)
3rd Q: 10–18 (49–37)
4th Q: 30–8 (79–45)

Top Scorers
NJC
Rachel Tan (#2) – 12 points

RGS
Ethel Tan (#3) – 16 points

NJC Roster
Tan Wei Xuan Rachel (#2), Ng Mu Rong (#3), Agnes Lee Ying Faye (#5), Joanna Wei Xin Yue (#9), Arshia Bansal (#10), Tiana Huang Chienchi (#14), Kimi Neo Huilin (#15), Amanda Han Xinzhi (#20), Aruna D/O Vadivelu (#21), Baskar Janisha Reddy (#25), Low Engie (#27), Breanne Kaur Gill (#32)

RGS Roster
Ethel Tan (#3), Cassandra Seah (#5), Kaitlyn Cheong (#6), Loh May Shann (#8), Lwynn Ng (#11), Charmaine Ng (#12), Jamie Tan (#13), Natasha Sanghar (#17), Ong Zhen Ying (#22), Alesha Johannes (#23), Gladys Chua (#32), Nicole Tng (#50)

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