Story by REDintern Daniel Yeo. Photos by Dylan Chua/Red Sports.

Yang Shixuan (NYG #12) pulls up for a mid range jumper on her way to a 22-point outing against Jurong. (Photo 1 © Dylan Chua/Red Sports)

Yang Shixuan (NYG #12) pulls up for a mid range jumper on her way to a 22-point outing against Jurong. (Photo 1 © Dylan Chua/Red Sports)

OCBC Arena, Thursday, March 29, 2018 — The first game of the National B Division Basketball Championship’s (Girls) second round saw a rematch of this year’s West Zone final. But, unlike that three-overtime thriller, Nanyang Girls’ (NYG) blew out Jurong Secondary (JSS) 56–34.

Nanyang, with a 1-0 win-loss record, stands at the top of their group, while Jurong has to settle for a 0-1 win-loss record.

Nanyang were led by Yang Shixuan (NYG #12) with a game-high 22 points, while teammate Goh Kung Huang (NYG #15) contributed 16 of her own. Jurong were led by Valerie Lim (JSS #7) with 11 points, with Loh Yu Xian scoring 10.

As the starting buzzer sounded, Kung Huang (NYG #15) and Yu Xian (JSS #13) each helped put their teams on the board. Yu Xian, especially, had the hot hand, finishing around the rim and stroking her mid-range jumpers to finish with eight of Jurong’s 10 points in the first quarter.

Despite being down 10–6 after the first quarter, Nanyang rallied to go on a scoring run, and by the 17-minute mark of the game, were up by six. Time and time again, when Jurong looked like they could be closing the gap, Nanyang got a bucket to pull away, emphasised by a Li Silin (NYG #11) three-pointer.

This forced Jurong into a timeout, which they hoped would help re-energise them and keep the game close as they approached halftime. Shixuan (NYG #12), however, would not allow them to get back into the game, sinking a rainbow trey to begin running away with the lead.

As the first half ended, Jurong realised that their zone defence did not have the desired effect on the Nanyang offence after an 18-point showing in the second quarter. Knowing this, they changed to a man-to-man defensive strategy. But, that did not stop Kung Huang (NYG #15), as she opened Nanyang’s scoring in the second half with a heavily contested under-basket shot.

Jurong, on the other hand, was kept scoreless for the first seven minutes of the third quarter by some seamless zone defence by Nanyang. It was a joy to watch the defence move as if all five Nanyang defenders were attached to each other with string. On the offensive end, Nanyang’s crisp passing helped them to generate higher-percentage looks at the rim, a tough scoop layup by Shixuan (NYG #12) the exclamation point to their scoring.

Valerie (JSS #7) was finally able to end Jurong’s drought with a push shot in the lane, but they struggled to score for the rest of the quarter with a series of bad turnovers. The third quarter subsequently ended 34–24.

The high-scoring tandem of Shixuan (NYG #12) and Kung Huang (NYG #15) began the fourth quarter with some refreshing pick-and-roll play and to great effect. The first play of the fourth quarter saw Shixuan kick it to a driving Kung Huang for the score, and on the next play, Kung Huang returned the favour by finding a cutting Shixuan for a layup.

When asked about their on-court play together, Shixuan had this to say: “I’ve been friends with her (Kung Huang) since Secondary 1 and we’re quite good friends. I think it’s how we built chemistry.”

Koh Yu Qian (JSS #9) put Jurong on the board in the fourth quarter, but despite their attempts to cut into the lead, could not execute on the less glamorous end. With seven minutes left in the game, Jurong began using their full-court press, but to no avail.

Valerie (JSS #7) got caught on a Kung Huang (NYG #15) screen while defending Shixuan (NYG #12) full-court, and with no help from Jurong’s man-to-man defence, Shixuan sailed in for an easy two – a play which encapsulated Jurong’s defence in the quarter.

With a 17-point deficit and with 4:30 left on the clock, Jurong called a timeout to halt the Nanyang momentum and recollect themselves to cut into the lead. Be that as it may, Shixuan again had different ideas.

She came out of the timeout firing on all cylinders, first hitting on a high-arcing three to extend the lead to 20. She then found teammates Kung Huang again with a fancy bullet pass for the score and the assist. Finally, at the end of the shot clock, with less than a minute remaining, she pulled up from deep and knocked down a buzzer-beater for the closing points of the game.

An emotional captain Valerie (JSS #7) shared why she thought the team did not perform to their potential today: “I think we didn’t have our confidence because we lost to them (in the West Zone final). Nobody had the confidence to play the game today.”

When asked about the team could improve for their next game, Valerie added: “We have to have that fighting spirit and be more eager to play.”

A satisfied captain Shixuan (NYG #12) shared on her team’s takeaways from the game today: “Our offence and defence were both quite good today. We can learn from these positive points and execute in our next matches.”

More action from the second round of the National B Division Basketball Championship (Girls) takes place on Monday, April 2 at OCBC Arena.

Scoring by Quarter
Jurong v Nanyang Girls’
1st Q: 10–6
2nd Q: 8–18 (18–24)
3rd Q: 6–10 (24–34)
4th Q: 10–22 (34–56)

Leading Scorers
Jurong
Valerie Lim (#7) – 11 points
Loh Yu Xian (#13) – 10 points

Nanyang Girls’
Yang Shixuan (#12) – 22 points
Goh Kung Huang (#15) – 16 points

Jurong Roster
Celine (#4), Charmaine Ong (#5), Valerie Tan (#6), Valerie Lim (#7), Koh Yu Qian (#9), Kindra Sim (#10), Richa Rachel John (#11), Loh Yu Xian (#13), Foo Le Yao (#14), Ng Kai Lie (#17), Putri (#23), Sarrah Nabilah Bte Mokhlas (#31)

Nanyang Girls’ Roster
Goh Wing Xuan (#5), Lee Ying Ying, Pamela (#7), Goh Cheng Gek Jade Lenor (#8), Li Silin (#11), Yang Shixuan (#12), Goh Kung Huang (#15), Rachel Teo Hui Ling (#31), Low Ying Hui (#32), Chua Su-Ann Shu En (#33), Emi Chow Yu Tong (#34), Michelle Heng Qian Ying (#35), Zann Siow Jun Hui (#37)

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