Story by REDintern Charles Lim. Photos by Lee Jian Wei/Red Sports.
Nurhairie Nazief (#15) of Unity Secondary shoots against (#6) of Dunman High. (Photo 1 © Lee Jian Wei/Red Sports)
OCBC Arena, Tuesday, March 20, 2018 — West Zone Champions Unity Secondary (US) showed their mettle with a 61-25 victory against Dunman High School (DHS) in the Preliminary Round of the National B Division Basketball Championship.
Starting the game with a full-court man-to-man defence, Unity turned up the pressure against the Dunman High offence and managed to force crucial turnovers that transited to smooth possessions of their own. That helped put Unity ahead with a comfortable 19-9 lead in the first quarter. Nicholas Peh (US #7) was responsible for a significant part of Unity’s points, contributing eight points in the quarter.
Facing constant pressure from Unity after having numerous missed chances, Dunman High was not able to reduce the deficit. Unity was able to further stretch their lead in the second quarter, with points mostly coming off fast-break opportunities. The second quarter ended with Unity taking a 36-13 lead.
The third quarter saw Dunman High improve on both ends of the floor as they were able to keep Unity at bay. Unity outscored Dunman 9–8 in a close third quarter and ended the quarter with a 45-21 lead.
However, Unity picked up the tempo once again in the last quarter and extended their lead over Dunman High. The Dunman High defence committed numerous unnecessary fouls which put them in the penalty in the final minutes of the game.
Commenting on the game, Dunman High Captain Cheus Kai (DHS #5) mentioned, “Our defence (for today) is not up to standard, the team is not communicating.” On what he has to say to his team, Cheus Kai (DHS #5) replied, “Let’s keep our heads up. On to the next one.”
When asked about the overall team performance, Unity Captain Ryan Hoa (US #2) replied, “We had a good start to the game, followed our coach’s plays and put up a good defence.” He added that the team aspires to be the National B Division Basketball champions and concluded with a succinct statement to their supporters, “See you all at the National Finals.”
Unity will face off against Mayflower Secondary in their next match, whereas Dunman High will be facing Presbyterian High School. Both matches will be played on March 22 at OCBC Arena Hall 1.
Scoring by Quarter
US vs DHS
1st Quarter: 19-9
2nd Quarter: 17–4 (36-13)
3rd Quarter: 9-8 (45-21)
4th Quarter: 16–4 (61-25)
Top Scorers
US
Nicholas Peh (#7) – 14 points
Nurhairie Nazief (#15) – 9 points
DHS
Joseph (#7) – 12 points
Unity Roster
Melvin Chua Dong En (#1), Ryan Hoa Wai Ming (#2), Jarric Quek Jun Ying (#3), Raymus (#4), Nicholas Peh Chi Leong (#7), Spencer (#8), Li Ming (#9), Jude Emmanuel Viray Pabustan (#11), Neo Tock Peng (#12), Nurhairie Nazief (#15), Clarence(#20), Jonathan Ng Zi Bin (#35)
DHS Roster
Ray (#4), Cheus Kai (#5), Rave (#6), Joesph (#7), Aaron Tan (#8), Lucas (#9), Jovan (#10), Aaron Tan (#11), Benjamin Ong (#12), Yong Wei (#13), Aiken (#14), Gareth (#15)
More photos next page
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