Story By REDintern Zachary Foo. Photos by REDintern Sasha Christian
Brendon Ngiam (#6) goes for the basket despite his opponent’s attempt to block him. (Photo 1 © REDintern Sasha Christian)
PESEB, Evans Road, Monday, July 15, 2013 — Raffles Institution (RI) rode a strong second quarter to defeat Serangoon Garden Secondary 44-31. Raffles now top Group C in the South Zone C Division Boys’ Championship while Serangoon Garden are at the bottom of the table. Nevertheless, Serangoon have continuously displayed a passion for the game throughout the season, regardless of their circumstance. This trait was evident in this game as well.
Nino Castillo (#14) of RI had a game-high 13 points while Terance Tan (#4) of Serangoon had a team-high of eight points.
In the first quarter, both teams struggled to get their engines going. Raffles found much success with their full-court press, creating a lot of turnovers as Serangoon struggled to advance the ball. However, they could not convert baskets, even after establishing position in the paint. This allowed Serangoon Garden to stay only five points behind, as they made the most of the few opportunities they had in Raffles’ half.
Raffles blew the game wide open in the second quarter, using the height of Danny Goh (#10) to steal the ball in aerial duels with various Serangoon Garden players. Danny would then play provider and assist his teammates for easy baskets. Serangoon Garden finally managed to break their scoring drought with a lay-up by captain Terance Tan (#4), eight minutes into the second quarter. Raffles went into half-time with a very comfortable 18-point lead.
In the third quarter, Raffles again continued to utilise the full-court press. Their captain, Marcus Soon Khai Siang (#5) was extremely vocal on defence, calling out free players and directing his team to pressure accordingly. Serangoon started to slip in the third, making quite a few clumsy turnovers and giving the ball away to Raffles.
Even though they were down and potentially out of the game, Serangoon seemed to have found a second wind in the fourth quarter. The players were visibly more energised than they were in the previous quarters and the bench was becoming more lively as the game progressed.
Things came to a head halfway through the fourth quarter, as Serangoon seemed to mount a mini-comeback of their own. Their own full-court press was stifling Raffles’ offence and their shots started falling for them, most notably for Tan Kai Wen (#13) who had an and-one after sinking his shot without even looking at the basket. Serangoon Garden managed to put up more points in the fourth than in their previous three quarters but their comeback was too late to stop Raffles from winning 44–31.
Raffles’ captain Marcus Soon (#5) had high hopes for his team. “We struggled to get going in the opening quarter and it was not that good. Overall, we were worse compared to the last game, but we made a more cohesive effort on our full court press. We need to pass better, make the open shots and pressure on defence more. I hope that we can make it to Top 4 in the zone and qualify for Nationals.”
Serangoon Garden’s captain Terance Tan (#4) and vice-captain Tay Hock Soon (#8) were visibly more upbeat after the game, despite the loss. “We helped each other more today and I think that was what made the difference. Even though we had a lot of turnovers in the first three quarters, we managed to pull [Raffles] back a little in the fourth quarter. Most importantly, we learned to enjoy the game more and that was what made this game fun,” said Terence.
“I think the bench encouraged us more and that was what drove the mini-comeback in the fourth quarter,” added Hock Soon.
Scoring by Quarter
Raffles vs Serangoon Garden
1st Q: 9–4
2nd Q: 17–4 (26–8)
3rd Q: 10–5 (36–13)
4th Q: 8–18 (44–31)
Top Scorers
Raffles Institution
Nino Jansen Castillo (#14) – 13 points
Danny Goh Zhi Jie (#10) – 9 points
Serangoon Garden
Terance Tan Zheng Yuan (#4) – 8 points
Tay Hock Soon (#8) – 6 points
Raffles Roster
Jung Sung Bum (#4), Marcus Soon Khai Siang (#5), Brendon Ngiam Jia Long (#6), Neo Yu Fan (#7), Liu Jia Wei (#8), Aiden Phua Ze Xuan (#9), Danny Goh Zhi Jie (#10), Mark Lucas Yeo Jia Rui (#11), Toby Yan Yi Qing (#12), Kerby Soh Chen Ker (#13), Nino Jansen Castillo (#14), Jethro Kwong Jun Hao (#15)
Serangoon Garden Roster
Terance Tan Zheng Yuan (#4), Johansen B Jauhari Jos (#5), Zeus Lim Jia Hao (#6), Darryle Xedrik De Quiroz (#7), Tay Hock Soon (#8), Wesley Wong (#9), Tan Jun Xiang (#10), Bryan Anico Liwanag (#11), Vinayagamoorthy Manikandan (#12), Tan Kai Wen (#13), Ryan Lim Chuan Ren (#14), Aballe Tyrone Kenneth Macatang (#15)
2013 South Zone C Division Basketball Championship – fixtures and results
More photos next page
Leave A Comment