By Gan Yu Neng/Red Sports
Jayne Chan (#12) of CHIJ has the whole Unity team chasing after her as she breaks for the basket. Jayne had a game-high 25 points. (Photo © Les Tan/Red Sports)
Clementi Sports Hall, Thursday, August 2, 2012 — Unity Secondary’s girls pulled no punches in today’s match, mercilessly beating CHIJ Toa Payoh 77-38 to top their Round 1 group with three wins, no losses in the National C Division Basketball Championship.
CHIJ Toa Payoh are now second in the group with two wins and one loss. Both teams will move on to the second round.
Unity were in control for the vast majority of the match. The players were clearly more seasoned than the CHIJ team, and unafraid to play a little on the physical side. Musrifa (#9) and Nur Illimahira (#6), among others, were clearly not afraid to use their size advantage to barge straight through the CHIJ defense.
Unity’s players did not hesitate to make steals even right after they had scored, trapping CHIJ at their own basket before they could mount any semblance of a counter-attack.
The stronger and physically larger Unity team were also able to easily capture their own offensive rebounds. In the third quarter, at one stage Unity spent almost the entire shot clock just making repeated attempts at CHIJ’s basket, with CHIJ’s defense simply unable to grab the rebound.
Unity, however, clearly had more than just size on their side. Even though Unity’s Nur Athirah (#12) was easily the tiniest player on court, with her extremely aggressive steals and her high accuracy, she was able to put in a very respectable eight points despite her brief appearances on court in the second and third quarters. In the second quarter, Athirah made herself a menace just by charging in and attempting to intercept throw-ins by CHIJ.
The player with the most points in the match, however, was CHIJ’s Jayne Chan (#12), whose 25 points was almost twice of Unity’s highest scorer. This, however, can be attributed in no small part to Jayne being CHIJ’s only real offensive option; in contrast, all but one of Unity’s 12-strong squad made the score sheet this match.
Jayne Chan was the focal point for the entire CHIJ team. As soon as CHIJ had possession, she would patiently wait slightly ahead as her teammates attempted to get the ball to her, before advancing it up to Unity’s basket with a quick drive for the lay-up while her teammates watched from their half of the court.
Over the course of the match, despite repeatedly relying on the same solo fast break, Jayne did manage to perform some spectacular lay-ups. Without her teammates there to screen for her, she outran the entire Unity defense with her own agility, and maintained a respectable accuracy despite being under pressure from the other team.
In the fourth quarter, Jayne was subbed out and Desiree Lee (#4) took her place as the mainstay of CHIJ’s offense. Desiree was slightly more prone to fumbles and misses, and Unity’s defense, never far behind, were unforgiving of any mistakes.
The last few minutes of the game centered itself around CHIJ’s basket, which the Unity girls besieged repeatedly. With CHIJ unable to punish them for misses or even to pass the ball out of the Unity blockade on turnovers, the score gap continued growing all the way to the end of the game.
Score by Quarter
Unity vs CHIJ Toa Payoh
1st Q: 21-14
2nd Q: 17-6 (38-20)
3rd Q: 21-12 (59-32)
4th Q: 18-6
Final Score: 77-38
Top Scorers
Unity Secondary
Maisarah bte Md Sauki (#7) — 13 points
Lim Xiang Xuan (#13) — 10 points
Musrifah Fadzlia (#9) — 10 points
Lim Ke An (#10) — 8 points
Ng Jie Yi (#15) — 8 points
Nur Athirah (#12) — 8 points
Eilya Sabrina (#8) — 7 points
Nur Illimahira (#6) — 6 points
Melissa Mok (#4) — 4 points
Nurul Ameerah (#5) — 2 points
Nur Amirah (#11) — 1 point
CHIJ Toa Payoh
Jayne Chan Jing Yi (#12) — 25 points
Desiree Lee Si Qi (#4) — 12 points
Liew Yu Wen, Rachel (#7) — 1 point
Unity Secondary Roster
Melissa Mok (#4), Nurul Ameerah (#5), Nur Illimahira (#6), Maisarah bte Md Sauki (#7). Eilya Sabrina (#8), Musrifah Fadzlia (#9), Lim Ke An (#10), Nur Amirah (#11), Nur Athirah (#12), Lim Xiang Xuan (#13), Tan Jun Xiu (#14), Ng Jie Yi (#15)
CHIJ Toa Payoh
Desiree Lee Si Qi (#4), Anjou Ang Xing (#5), Jevonne Liew Jia Wen (#6), Liew Yu Wen, Rachel (#7), Cordelia Te Rong Theresa (#8), Lois Ng Le Yi (#9), Nigelle Leo Yuwen (#10), Tai Jia Wen, Yvonne (#11), Jayne Chan Jing Yi (#12), Marriott See Yi Wei (#13), Cheong Jamie (#14), Clara Teo Yu Ching (#15)
National C Division Basketball Championship — full fixtures and results
More photos in gallery next page
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