An RI player and Chee Khan Liang (HCI, #7) are in sync for a split second. (Photo 1 © Les Tan/Red Sports)

Singapore Basketball Centre, Friday, May 11, 2012 — Hwa Chong Institution marched into the final of the National A Division Boys’ Basketball Championship with a comfortable 81-51 win over Raffles Institution.

It was a semi-final matchup that Raffles were trying to avoid but their surprise 38-51 loss to Dunman High left them with no choice.

Yet Raffles went into the game with a plan to pressure their opponents from the start and score off steals and turnovers. Their plan succeeded to a certain extent as they held Hwa Chong to a 21-point first quarter output, but it was at the offensive end that hurt Raffles.

Raffles’ comparatively smaller forwards connected on only three of the numerous attempted 3-point shots throughout the match and allowed their bigger-sized opponents to score off second chance points at the basket.

In the end, Hwa Chong enjoyed a scoring advantage every quarter to overpower their opponents.

Hwa Chong will now face Anderson Junior College (AJC) in the final next Friday, May 18th, at the Toa Payoh Sports Hall. AJC beat Dunman High 65-55 in the other semi-final.

Hwa Chong beat AJC by only 16 points (56-40) in a Round 2 encounter, so this final between the two teams will be intriguing. However, Hwa Chong go into the final as overwhelming favourites and most expect them to win.

The only relevant question is — by how many points?

Score by Quarter
Raffles Institution v Hwa Chong Institution
1st Q: 10-21
2nd Q: 14-18 (24-39)
3rd Q: 14-22 (38-61)
4th Q: 13-20
Final score: 51-81

Top Scorers
Hwa Chong Institution
Chun Wang Xuan (#15) – 18 points
Austin Cooper (#5) – 14 points
Lee Lai Sheng (#11) — 14 points
Peter Soo (#4) – 13 points
David Soo (#6) – 8 points
Tan Jun Wei (#8) – 6 points

Raffles Institution
#6 – 11 points
#15 – 9 points
#7 – 8 points
#4 — 7 points
#8 – 7 points
#10 – 3 points
#13 – 3 points

Hwa Chong Institution Lineup
Peter Soo (#4), Austin Cooper (#5), David Soo (#6), Chee Khan Liang (#7), Tan Jun Wei (#8), Ang Shihe (#9), Raymond Loo (#10), Lee Lai Sheng (#11), Rolu Oyekanmi (#12), Cheong Rong Hao (#13), Shawn Tan Kai (#14), Chun Wang Xuan (#15)

Editor’s Note: If you know the names of the players, please put it in the comments section below. Thanks.

National A Division Basketball Championship — full fixtures and results

More photos next page