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

Tang Kah Wai (PHS #10) rises for a lay-up on the break. The forward from Presbyterian High scored a game-high 23 points against Mayflower. (Photo 1 © Dylan Chua/Red Sports)

Tang Kah Wai (PHS #10) rises for a lay-up on the break. The forward from Presbyterian High scored a game-high 23 points against Mayflower. (Photo 1 © Dylan Chua/Red Sports)

OCBC Arena, Tuesday, March 20, 2018 — Presbyterian High School (PHS) put up a dominant display on both ends of the floor as they cruised to a 71-42 victory over Mayflower Secondary School (MSS) in the National B Division Basketball Championship.

Presbyterian High, who now have a 1-0 win-loss record in the preliminary round, was led by Tang Kah Wai (#10) who had a game-high 23 points while Foo Yong Ming (#12) and Jaron Ng (#15) chipped in 12 and 10 respectively.

“We lacked intensity on defense and that really hurt us during the game,” commented Azel Tsai (MSS #11) after the game. He led his team with 14 points while Joshua Kirt (MSS #7) added 11 points. Mayflower now have a 0-1 record in the preliminary round.

Both teams started the game cold on offense as they could not convert their shots despite moving the ball well to create wide-open shots.

However, Presbyterian High switched up their offensive game-plan and focused on using their height advantage to attack the paint and grab a 6-0 lead with 6:24 remaining.

Mayflower responded with a fast-break lay-up off a Presbyterian High turnover to end their scoring drought with 5:37 remaining but Presbyterian High would proceed to lock up defensively to force turnovers and ended the quarter with a 10-3 run fueled by fast-break points.

Presbyterian High would start off the second quarter with four quick fast-break points to grab a 21-5 lead with 7:42 left and force Mayflower into a timeout.

Mayflower would step up their game right out of the timeout as they picked up the pace on offense and tightened their defense to claw their way back to a 37-26 scoreline at half-time.

The momentum of the game would shift in favor of Presbyterian High in the third period, where they stifled Mayflower’s offense to force them into taking tough shots and out-ran the defense for points in transition to extend their lead to 56-31 heading into the final period.

Despite the 25-point deficit, Mayflower continued to relentlessly attack the paint and went on a 6-o run to start of the final period.

However, their defense was unable to contain Presbyterian High’s quick-paced offense and dashed any hopes of a comeback as Presbyterian High walked off with a convincing 71-42 victory at the final buzzer.

Mayflower Secondary will next play Unity Secondary while Presbyterian High will next face Dunman High on 22 March. Both matches will tip-off at 1.15 pm at the OCBC arena.

Scoring by Quarter
PHS vs Mayflower
1st Quarter: 17–5
2nd Quarter: 20–21 (37–26)
3rd Quarter: 19–5 (56–31)
4th Quarter: 15–11 (71–42)

Top Scorers
PHS
Tang Kah Wai (#10) — 23 points
Foo Yong Ming (#12) — 12 points
Jaron Ng (#15) — 10 points

Mayflower
Azel Tsai Qi Xun (#11) — 14 points
Joshua Kirt Salvo Jungoy (#7) — 11 points

Mayflower Roster
Akshat Basu Mallik (#4), Lau Yan Hui (#5), Law John Matthew Miguel (#6), Joshua Kirt Salvo Jungoy (#7), Tan Yong Jie Lukas (#8), See Boon Ping (#9), Phang Dao Cheng (#10), Tsai Qi Xun Azel (#11), Teng Yan Siak (#12), Abdiel Jeremiah N De Leon (#13), Ong Jing Yi (#14), Wong Bei Xuan (#15)

PHS Roster
Constantin Lim (#3), Ivan Kau (#4), Kovan Toh (#5), Thomas Lor (#7), Tang Kah Wai (#10), Foo Yong Ming (#12), Goh Yi Xiang (#13), Jaron Ng (#15), Dylan Lee (#20), Gifford Chua (#21), Aaron Chaw (#26), Reuben Ng (#35)

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