Story and photos by Low Zheng Yu/Red Sports
Tiong Chuan Yao (NV #9) with the crossover move for two. He led North Vista with team-high 23 points. (Photo 1 © Low Zheng Yu/Red Sports)
Clementi Sports Hall, Wednesday, April 5, 2017 — North Vista Secondary (NV) cruised past Woodgrove Secondary (WG) 70-49 to remain undefeated in the National B Division Basketball Championship.
With this win, North Vista have a 6-0 win-loss record and are the only team still undefeated in the Nationals. They advance as the winner of Group B and will face Presbyterian High in the semi-finals.
This loss marks the end of the season for Woodgrove. They have a 3-3 win-loss record in the Nationals. They had lost to Fairfield Methodist and attained victory over Unity in their previous round two games.
While Woodgrove, Unity and Fairfield Methodist were in a three-way tie for second, Woodgrove could not advance as they had the worst points difference among the three teams. Woodgrove ended their season as fourth in Group B.
As soon as the ball was tipped, North Vista wasted no time in getting to work. North Vista made a series of passes which led to a shot. While it missed, Tiong Chuan Yao (NV #9) out-hustled the bigger Woodgrove centers for the offensive put-back.
Tiong Chuan Yao (NV #9) then made another layup to give North Vista the four-point lead.
However, the size of Woodgrove’s centers proved too much to handle as Andy Liow (WG #14) makes an easy under-basket shot.
North Vista did not let that dull their spirits as they continued to fight aggressively for every possession and opportunity to score. They went to their full court press defense early and managed to force several turnovers off Woodgrove.
Other than that, despite the bigger size of Woodgrove centers, North Vista out-hustled Woodgrove for many offensive rebounds and put-backs as they went on a 8-0 run to pull away.
North Vista were up 16-6 at the end of the first quarter.
While North Vista continued to get the offensive rebounds and put-backs, Woodgrove came out more composed after the break. Chen Pengkun (WG #9) made a three to get things going for Woodgrove. Woodgrove played smart and made use of Owen Liow’s (WG #11) size to score.
As North Vista benched their starting five to conserve their energy, Owen Liow (#11) took advantage of that to beast and feast in the paint area for Woodgrove. He scored 15 of the 18 second quarter points for Woodgrove to tie the game at 24-24 after the first half.
Owen Liow (WG #11) had a game-high 26 points.
North Vista came into the third quarter hot. Tiong Chuan Yao (NV #9) made a three to start things off. Thereafter, North Vista were able to force another turnover with their full court press to quickly bring the lead up by five.
While Woodgrove attempted to fight back, their passes were sloppy. This gave the more aggressive North Vista many scoring opportunities due to the turnovers they were able to force off Woodgrove.
While Owen Liow (WG #11) beat the buzzer with an under-basket, North Vista were up 52-34 after the third.
Momentum was on North Vista’s side as their players continue making their shots from all corners of the floor.
Woodgrove simply had no answer for the scoring streak of North Vista. This coupled with their sloppy plays only allowed North Vista to farther increase their lead.
North Vista ultimately took revenge by ending Woodgrove’s season in the Nationals after Woodgrove had previously deprived them of their chance to play in the North Zone final. They cruised past Woodgrove 70-49 to remain undefeated.
Tiong Chuan Yao (NV #9), who led North Vista with 23 points of his own, said, “Woodgrove did well in taking advantage of their size to score in the first half. However we figured out how to defend their big players and were able to stop them.”
“It was a sweet revenge victory today and we are on a roll right now. We are on a road to redemption after the upset during the North Zone.”
Captain Cheng Ye Hui (NV #7) added, “We will do the very best we can and be the very best we are to achieve what we want to achieve.”
Scoring by Quarter
North Vista vs Woodgrove
1st Q: 16-6
2nd Q: 8-18 (24-24)
3rd Q: 28-10 (52-34)
4th Q: 18-15 (70-49)
Top Scorers
North Vista
Tiong Chuan Yao (#9) – 23 pts
Woodgrove
Liow Cheng Xun Owen (#11) – 26 pts
North Vista Roster
Justen Chiam (#0), Chan Qi Feng (#3), Vincent Gerard (#4), Sim Yi (#5), Cheng Ye Hui (#7), Willie Tan (#8), Tiong Chuan Yao (#9), Dillion Ong (#11), Reuben David (#12), Jarren Neo (#13), Lim Joe Yang (#21), Dorian Chin (#23)
Woodgrove Roster
Ping Wen (#3), Edwin Soo Ian Zhang (#4), Chong Shao Kai, Sky (#5), Lacsado Jack William Santiago (#7), Seah Jin Yong (#8), Chen Pengkun (#9), Yap Chun Jack (#10), Liow Cheng Xun Owen (#11), Andy Lim Jia En (#12), Soh Keng Yip (#13), Liow Cheng Lin Andy (#14), Fang Hanbin (#15)
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