RI 52 - 41 Serangoon Gardens Secondary

The semi-finals. Initially we were confident of winning. However, the first quarter of the match made us less certain. We scored the first 3 points of the game, taking the lead. However, the opponent quickly came back with a 3-pointer of their own and 2 more shots, taking a 4 point lead. We played pretty good defence but allowed them to take 3 pointers around the baseline. This was extremely costly for us because they made most of their shots. Fortunately, the opponents still made some unnecessary turnovers which we capitalised on, narrowing their lead.

Thanks to all our tough physical training before the match, we outlasted the opponents. By the second half, they were clearly exhausted. We were exhausted ourselves too, but we were better able to persevere. We were able to make our shots and secure our defensive rebounds, and finally took the lead. We continued with the suffocating defence throughout the rest of the game, and ended the game with an assuring 11 points victory margin.

We will be playing in the finals against ACS Barker on 5th March at Jurong Sports Hall. This will be a rematch for the disappointing 9 points loss we suffered during the quarter finals against them. During that game, we had a very strong first quarter both offensively and defensively and also took the lead. However, the turning point in the game during the third quarter when we allowed their centre to score consecutive under baskets against our zone defence. This tremendously boosted their moral and their wings started to hit their 3-pointers, and their forwards were motivated to go for the offensive rebounds. I believe that if we want to win the South Zone finals for the fourth straight year, we will need to up our defence to a whole new level. Our guards will have to be quick on their feet and prevent any uncontested 3 pointers by their wing, without committing a foul in the process. Our forwards and centre will have to front the centre and provide help defence to prevent their centre from using his drop step to score on us. Additionally, they will need to box out and get all the defensive rebounds since we are obviously shorter than them. I believe that we can win this match, the choice rests with us.


Points per quarter for RI vs SGS match
First quarter: RI 11 - 12 SGS
Second quarter: RI 12 - 14 SGS
Third quarter: RI 11 - 2 SGS
Fourth quarter: RI 18 - 13 SGS