Story by REDintern Emer Hoong. Photos by REDintern Adeline Lee.
Howard Tan (MJC #20) taking a free throw. He was the top scorer of the game with 28 points. (Photo 1 © REDintern Adeline Lee)
Singapore Basketball Centre, Monday, April 11, 2016 – Nanyang Junior College (NYJC) beat Meridian Junior College (MJC) 47-45 in the National A Division Boys Basketball Championship.
Howard Tan (#20) had a game-high 28 points for MJC while Shawn Toh (#6) led NYJC with 24.
NYJC go top of their group with a 2-0 win-loss record while MJC fall to 1-1.
“Firstly we did quite well on offence. Defence we can still improve on. We hustled for a lot of balls. We want to credit MJC, they played a good game. We want to work harder and we will not get complacent,” said Shawn Toh (#6), the NYJC captain.
NYJC jumped out to an 8-3 lead in the first quarter through Jonathan Ryanto (#12), Tan Jin Hui (#8) and Al Khalifa (#14), with Howard Tan (MJC #20) countering with a 3-pointer. NYJC continue their scoring streak to finish and the quarter leading 13-7, NYJC in the lead.
In the 2nd quarter, MJC caught up, closing the gap in no time. With 3 minutes left in the quarter, Ivan Sng (MJC #21) drove to the basket and drew a foul. He scored from both his free throws to reduce the deficit to two points (16-18).
However, Shawn Toh (NYJC #6) responded with a 3-pointer with 1:30 to go, and then drew a foul and sank his free throw to give NYJC a 25-16 lead. NYJC took a 25-18 lead into half time.
Despite many attempts, there was no scoring for almost half of the third quarter. MJC drove repeatedly into the paint and drew many free throws. However, NYJC’s teamwork saw them extend their lead to nine points (31-20).
However, MJC did not let NYJC pull away, and put together a six-point scoring run to eventual trail by just four (29-33) heading into the fourth quarter.
Al Khalifa (NYJC #14) opened the scoring with a layup 30 seconds into the fourth quarter, before quickly scoring another two points on free throws.
With 5 minutes to go, with NYJC leading and the score stagnated at 39-34, MJC called a time out.
MJC came back stronger after the timeout as the game entered its climax. Howard Tan (MJC #20) dropped two points with a lay up and with 4 minutes to go, NYJC led 40-36 and it was still anyone’s game.
With tensions running high, NYJC pulled away to a four-point, 42-38 lead. With less than 3 minutes to go, Howard Tan (MJC #20) tied it up at 40-40. Then teammate Li Shu (MJC #2) scored to give his team a 42-40 lead.
NYJC came back quickly to tie it at 42 all with 1:12 to go. Then Tan Jin Hui (NYJC #8) restored the lead at 44-42 with 32 seconds to go.
Bryan Hengardi (NYJC #13) managed to grab a rebound, drawing another foul, and sank one of two free throws for a 45-42 NYJC lead.
This forced MJC to call a timeout with 13 seconds left.
With possession of the ball, Howard Tan (MJC #20) came out of the timeout and scored a 3-pointer to tie the game at 45-all. With just eight seconds left on the clock, NYJC had possession of the ball. Shawn Toh (NYJC #6) stepped up to score two points just as time ran out to secure the 47-45 win.
Score by Quarter
NYJC vs MJC
1st Q: 13-7
2nd Q: 12-11 (25-18)
3rd Q: 8-11 (33-29)
4th Q: 14-16 (47-45)
Top Scorers
MJC
Howard Tan (#20) – 28 points
NYJC
Shawn Toh (#6) – 24 points
NYJC Roster
Lim Kai Ping (#0), Ngoh Wei Yue (#3), Shawn Toh Choon Sien (#6), Yap Yao Zhong, Billy (#7), Tan Jin Hui (#8), Tristan Chow Heng Yi (#9), James Lee Jie (#10), Lee Lai Wei (#11), Aldwin Jonathan Ryanto (#12), Bryan Phenghan Hengardi (#13), Al Khalifa Bin Mazlan (#14), Chieng Herng Ee (#45)
MJC Roster
Li Shu (#2), Aaron Ho (#4), Tzi Yu (#6), Jarrett Yip (#7), Shaun Lee (#8), Sim Jia Ming (#9), Yip Cheng Yu (#13), Howard Tan (#20), Ivan Sng (#21), Nelvin Tay (#22), Lai Jun Yuan (#23), Yu Fei
National A Division Boys Basketball Championship – fixtures and results
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