Final Score:
RI 40-71 Jurong
RI faced Jurong in the 2nd match of the Nationals. It was a do-or-die game, and winning was our only hope for qualification to the 2nd round.
Jurong was without their main post player, Marcus (#14), and this boosted our morale.
We started the game really nervously, letting them grab a lot of offensive rebounds, with the score at 15-6 after the first quarter. We played phenomenally in the second quarter, defending excellently and making big shots, coming from behind to take a 24-20 lead at the half. We somehow lost our focus when the other team opted to play with 4 small guys, putting the speed on and hitting their outside shots. We never recovered and lost the match 40-71.
Our last game is against Chung Cheng High (Yishun) on monday.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Hi B Div,
It seems just like yesterday when the C Div of 2007 were facing elimination from nats. Then, you guys reminded us abt dream.team.fight.win, during the CCA meeting just b4 the game against Jurong Sec. Although we lost that game, by 3pts, in the end, we fought through the whole game, giving Jurong a scare. Before the game, we dreamt that we could make it, dreamt that we could beat these overwhelming odds; and win. Even though we couldn't do it in the end, we fought our very best, and in years to come, we can all look back at that game and say: we gave it our 110%.
Dear seniors, you guys have always been our role models, working so 'hardcorely' during training. So, no matter how bad everything looks, just keep fighting, and show us what its like, to be real champions deep inside.
Go for it, B Div!! All of the sec 2s will be there to watch, along with a couple of sec 1s!! We'll be cheering you guys on till the very end.
Dream.Team.Fight.Win
It seems just like yesterday when the C Div of 2007 were facing elimination from nats. Then, you guys reminded us abt dream.team.fight.win, during the CCA meeting just b4 the game against Jurong Sec. Although we lost that game, by 3pts, in the end, we fought through the whole game, giving Jurong a scare. Before the game, we dreamt that we could make it, dreamt that we could beat these overwhelming odds; and win. Even though we couldn't do it in the end, we fought our very best, and in years to come, we can all look back at that game and say: we gave it our 110%.
Dear seniors, you guys have always been our role models, working so 'hardcorely' during training. So, no matter how bad everything looks, just keep fighting, and show us what its like, to be real champions deep inside.
Go for it, B Div!! All of the sec 2s will be there to watch, along with a couple of sec 1s!! We'll be cheering you guys on till the very end.
Dream.Team.Fight.Win
Monday, March 24, 2008
How to Dream-Team-Fight-Win
It has been a Rafflesian Basketball hallmark for the past 30 years (as far back as I have witnessed).In 1985, my classmate (who went on to become the top player in SGP in our time) told me: "I hate playing against RI. Regardless of the how far behind they are in the game, they always fight 死缠烂打 like they have a chance to win the game."
My friend was from basketball kingpins Anglican High (still their most famous player after all these years) and he was talking about RI, who seldom ventured past the zone competitions in those years.
Fast forward 23 years later, we (RI B Div) find ourselves on the brink of elimination after an embarrasing loss to Chung Cheng, where we showed zero fight, totally "spirit-less" match. Rather than focus on what is past (and responding to anonymous cheap shots over the internet), we'll rather come back and do all the work on the court.
Let me outline what we have to do:
(Dream-Team-Fight-Win is not a cliche or a nice slogan. It's something that I've always lived by when I build teams.)
DREAM - of victories, of championships, of impossibilities, last second steals and game-winning 3 pointers. Some people are always thinking NIGHTMARES, always thinking about what will go wrong, missing easy shots, getting blocked. The DREAMER focuses on where we want to get to. We will win because we refuse to lose.
- Quit thinking of failures and WILL ourselves to prevail.
TEAM - Not PERSONAL agenda, how many minutes did I play, whether I played well, whether I could have done better than my teammate on the court. All these are secondary to team agenda. "No man is bigger than the team".
- Quit thinking of "me" but think "US".
FIGHT - Fight our own battle, not the opponents'. Sometimes it is just victory, sometimes it is fighting for a 50-point margin, sometimes it is minimising our losing margin. It's not about the score, it's about the fight! We may lose the match but we NEVER SURRENDER the fight! We make sure when we leave the court, we are totally exhausted and have nothing in reserve.
- Quit fighting only when the whistle goes, not when you are down 50.
WIN - Anyone who says he is not trying to win is just making excuses before a game. We don't go into a game to LOSE. Winning is but an eventual outcome because we DREAM, TEAM and FIGHT.
- Quit thinking we are going to lose. I refuse to lose.
Are you ready? We have 1 day to get ready. Let's go.
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
RI-Chung Cheng High (Main)
Final Score:
RI 38-60 CCHM
This was the first match of the first round of the Nationals for the B Div.
We were up against their two star players, Colin, their speedy point guard, and Yirui, their huge forward/centre. Our tactics were to guard them tightly and attack them, hoping they would foul out.
For the first two quarters, we executed what was planned, but lost many points to missed rebounds and underbaskets. The last two quarters were played with poor spirit as they built up their lead.
Learning Points:
1) Communication-guys on the court & bench BOTH must talk
2) Rebounding-box out and rebound! Don't lose focus
We'll be back.
RI 38-60 CCHM
This was the first match of the first round of the Nationals for the B Div.
We were up against their two star players, Colin, their speedy point guard, and Yirui, their huge forward/centre. Our tactics were to guard them tightly and attack them, hoping they would foul out.
For the first two quarters, we executed what was planned, but lost many points to missed rebounds and underbaskets. The last two quarters were played with poor spirit as they built up their lead.
Learning Points:
1) Communication-guys on the court & bench BOTH must talk
2) Rebounding-box out and rebound! Don't lose focus
We'll be back.
Saturday, March 15, 2008
National Schools Basketball Championships B Div 2008
Official scores and fixtures at http://web.singnet.com.sg/~woontc/B%20Fixtures%20&%20Grouping%20(Pre).htm
Excellent REDSPORTS Basketball updates at http://redsports.sg/category/basketball/
Excellent REDSPORTS Basketball updates at http://redsports.sg/category/basketball/
Friday, March 14, 2008
RI 49-38 WRS
Our 3rd 4th game was played at the courts of SAS, starting at around 7. We decided to implement talking into a serious part of warm-up, counting all the made baskets, calling for ball, and calling 4 the player whom we were passing to. This was to ensure tat we didn't make the same mistakes like in the previous match.
When the match started, both teams were nervous, making unforced turnovers. However, our team didn't box out and allowed WRS to get way too many rebounds. Our communication was somewhat improved, relative to the previous match. In the game, however, we had several points of which we had some miscommunications, allowing some open lay-ups from the other team. We ended the quarter trailing by a narrow margin.
In the 2nd and 3rd quarters, we picked up the pace and our confidence grew. We played better, although still making a couple of mistakes. During these periods, we changed into a 3-2 zone, which the other team found how to break. However, the other started to fling wild 3s. Although they missed quite a few, we did not box out and allowed their centers to grab offensive rebounds and put them back it.
At the start of the 4th quarter, we played our best through the game. Although we started it trailing, we soon managed to get our grip and controlled the flow of the game. In the last 2 mins, we managed to do our 5 (press) very well, and forced several key turnovers that we converted into easy lay-ups and points. This managed to allow us to have a double digit lead when we ended the match.
Also, the following were named as all-stars of the ISIBL tournament:
-Justin Chua
-Jordaan Goh
-Brendan Sim
-Ding Jian Han
Effectively, we had 4 out of 5 of our starting lineup as all-stars!!
And so concludes our ISIBL campaign!
When the match started, both teams were nervous, making unforced turnovers. However, our team didn't box out and allowed WRS to get way too many rebounds. Our communication was somewhat improved, relative to the previous match. In the game, however, we had several points of which we had some miscommunications, allowing some open lay-ups from the other team. We ended the quarter trailing by a narrow margin.
In the 2nd and 3rd quarters, we picked up the pace and our confidence grew. We played better, although still making a couple of mistakes. During these periods, we changed into a 3-2 zone, which the other team found how to break. However, the other started to fling wild 3s. Although they missed quite a few, we did not box out and allowed their centers to grab offensive rebounds and put them back it.
At the start of the 4th quarter, we played our best through the game. Although we started it trailing, we soon managed to get our grip and controlled the flow of the game. In the last 2 mins, we managed to do our 5 (press) very well, and forced several key turnovers that we converted into easy lay-ups and points. This managed to allow us to have a double digit lead when we ended the match.
Also, the following were named as all-stars of the ISIBL tournament:
-Justin Chua
-Jordaan Goh
-Brendan Sim
-Ding Jian Han
Effectively, we had 4 out of 5 of our starting lineup as all-stars!!
And so concludes our ISIBL campaign!
Nationals 1st Round Fixtures
Greetings, the fixtures for B Div Nationals are out!
Tuesday, 18/3/08, 3.15pm RI vs CCHMS Court 2
Wednesday, 26/3/08 2.00pm RI vs Jurong Court 1
Monday, 31/3/08 3.15pm RI vs CCHY Court 2
All games will be played at Singapore Basketball Centre.
Tuesday, 18/3/08, 3.15pm RI vs CCHMS Court 2
Wednesday, 26/3/08 2.00pm RI vs Jurong Court 1
Monday, 31/3/08 3.15pm RI vs CCHY Court 2
All games will be played at Singapore Basketball Centre.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
SZ Update
Greetings everyone, here are a few team pictures from the B Division South Zone Championship thus far. We achieved a commendable third placing, and in so doing reaching our target set before the season of making the nationals.
After the Cat High game:
After the Prize Presentation Ceremony:
We would like to thank our juniors, seniors and especially the old boys for coming down to cheer us on throughout the SZ tournament. For the 1st round of Nationals, we have been grouped with:
1) Jurong
2) Chung Cheng High Main
3) Chung Cheng Yishun
The exact details of when our games will be played will be updated and posted here after we have received the fixtures. The venue will most probably be SBC.
Once again, thanks a lot for all the support and encouragement, and we hope to do everyone proud by qualifying for the second round and attaining more than what we had initially hoped for.
Dream. Team. Fight. Win.
where bronze is the new gold :)
After the Cat High game:
After the Prize Presentation Ceremony:
We would like to thank our juniors, seniors and especially the old boys for coming down to cheer us on throughout the SZ tournament. For the 1st round of Nationals, we have been grouped with:
1) Jurong
2) Chung Cheng High Main
3) Chung Cheng Yishun
The exact details of when our games will be played will be updated and posted here after we have received the fixtures. The venue will most probably be SBC.
Once again, thanks a lot for all the support and encouragement, and we hope to do everyone proud by qualifying for the second round and attaining more than what we had initially hoped for.
Dream. Team. Fight. Win.
where bronze is the new gold :)
Monday, March 10, 2008
RI 65 – 67 DHS
The semi-final match was scheduled to be played at FengShan CC, but due to unforeseen circumstances, the venue was changed to Dunman High courts. The game started at 4.45pm, of 11 March 2008.
The RI team started very badly, leaking on defence and forcing shots. At the end of the 1st quarter, the team was trailing 36-28. However, we fought hard, pressing full court and forcing several key turnovers, getting the deficit trimmed to 48-41 at the end of the 2nd quarter.
By the end of the third, we were leading by four points. However, as we went into the last quarter, the Dunman team showed their fighting spirit and forced a 2 point lead late in the final quarter.
By then, our point guard had fouled out. In the end, we could not overcome the 2 point deficit and lost 67-65.
During the game, we made several unforced turnovers that we should have avoided. After our debrief, we concluded that our defence was still not strong enough. Some of us were slacking during our press, and thus allowed the other team to score easy baskets. Also, we didn't box out hard enough and allowed their tall centre to get too many rebounds. In addition, we did not play good help side defence. Our communication was also lacking. Communication as in not calling who u were taking, and also not calling for ball when you were ahead. Lastly, our pre-game preparation was not very good. Some of us were not very prepared for the match due to the last-minute change in venue and also a degree of complacency.
The MVP for the RI squad is Jordaan Goh, who scored 26 pts.
The 3rd, 4th placing match will be played at SAS on Friday at 7pm. Pls come down to support the team.
RI 63-40 WRS
The game was played at the RI courts on 29 February. The match was scheduled to start at 5.30, but due to delays, the match could only be started at 5.45pm.
Both teams started well in the game, trading baskets early on. However, the pressure from the RI team’s defence soon broke down the other team, forcing turnovers and sparking fast breaks. This enabled the team to have a pull-out lead of 18-6 after the first quarter.
Throughout the rest of the match, the team pulled away steadily, albeit making a few mistakes on defence, we still managed to have a lead of 31-18 lead. In the final two quarters, we played steadily, finally winning the match 63-40.
At the end of the game, through our debrief, we concluded that some of our errors in the game was:
-Miscommunication on defence
-Rushing shots
The MVPs of the game are:
RI:
-Brendan Sim
-Justin Chua
WRS:
-No. 6
Our next match will be the semi-finals against Dunman High on 11 March, 4pm. It would be a tough match as the team have several key players out with sickness, however, we'll do our match to secure a finals berth. The game will be played at a sheltered outdoor CC near Bedok MRT.
Also, sincere apologises for posting this entry so late.
The RI team started very badly, leaking on defence and forcing shots. At the end of the 1st quarter, the team was trailing 36-28. However, we fought hard, pressing full court and forcing several key turnovers, getting the deficit trimmed to 48-41 at the end of the 2nd quarter.
By the end of the third, we were leading by four points. However, as we went into the last quarter, the Dunman team showed their fighting spirit and forced a 2 point lead late in the final quarter.
By then, our point guard had fouled out. In the end, we could not overcome the 2 point deficit and lost 67-65.
During the game, we made several unforced turnovers that we should have avoided. After our debrief, we concluded that our defence was still not strong enough. Some of us were slacking during our press, and thus allowed the other team to score easy baskets. Also, we didn't box out hard enough and allowed their tall centre to get too many rebounds. In addition, we did not play good help side defence. Our communication was also lacking. Communication as in not calling who u were taking, and also not calling for ball when you were ahead. Lastly, our pre-game preparation was not very good. Some of us were not very prepared for the match due to the last-minute change in venue and also a degree of complacency.
The MVP for the RI squad is Jordaan Goh, who scored 26 pts.
The 3rd, 4th placing match will be played at SAS on Friday at 7pm. Pls come down to support the team.
RI 63-40 WRS
The game was played at the RI courts on 29 February. The match was scheduled to start at 5.30, but due to delays, the match could only be started at 5.45pm.
Both teams started well in the game, trading baskets early on. However, the pressure from the RI team’s defence soon broke down the other team, forcing turnovers and sparking fast breaks. This enabled the team to have a pull-out lead of 18-6 after the first quarter.
Throughout the rest of the match, the team pulled away steadily, albeit making a few mistakes on defence, we still managed to have a lead of 31-18 lead. In the final two quarters, we played steadily, finally winning the match 63-40.
At the end of the game, through our debrief, we concluded that some of our errors in the game was:
-Miscommunication on defence
-Rushing shots
The MVPs of the game are:
RI:
-Brendan Sim
-Justin Chua
WRS:
-No. 6
Our next match will be the semi-finals against Dunman High on 11 March, 4pm. It would be a tough match as the team have several key players out with sickness, however, we'll do our match to secure a finals berth. The game will be played at a sheltered outdoor CC near Bedok MRT.
Also, sincere apologises for posting this entry so late.
Sunday, March 9, 2008
RI-Gan Eng Seng Sch
RI 58-53 GES
Our spirits were lifted when we saw two of their main players in casts during warmup, and we knew we were going to win this one.
We started off slowly, losing the first quarter 11-9, but we stormed back with a commanding 16-4 second quarter. We managed to hold off for the win, 58-53!
Our spirits were lifted when we saw two of their main players in casts during warmup, and we knew we were going to win this one.
We started off slowly, losing the first quarter 11-9, but we stormed back with a commanding 16-4 second quarter. We managed to hold off for the win, 58-53!
RI-Catholic High
We faced Catholic High in the zone semis, and lost 96-44.
We were unable to break their 2-3 defense and couldn't find shots, and were down 50-8 by the half.
We came back fighting in the second half and only let them score 2 more points than us, losing 96-44.
We had to get back in shape for the 3rd/4th placing against GES the next day.
We were unable to break their 2-3 defense and couldn't find shots, and were down 50-8 by the half.
We came back fighting in the second half and only let them score 2 more points than us, losing 96-44.
We had to get back in shape for the 3rd/4th placing against GES the next day.
RI-Serangoon Gardens Sec
In a match played in the second round of the south zone B Division tournament, Raffles Institution beat Serangoon Gardens 37-22.
The game was extremely low scoring, and had a lot of fouls, with one player apiece fouling out. We led 18-8 at the break, and pulled away with a 11-2 last quarter to win 37-22.
GES beat Pierce so we were into the zone semis and the nationals!
The game was extremely low scoring, and had a lot of fouls, with one player apiece fouling out. We led 18-8 at the break, and pulled away with a 11-2 last quarter to win 37-22.
GES beat Pierce so we were into the zone semis and the nationals!
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