Raffles Institution vs Dunman Secondary (51-45)

Raffles Institution vs Dunman Secondary (51-45)


We once again visited Dunman Secondary where we had lost all of our previous 3 meetings.

The game started off with both teams struggling to score as the defense played by both teams forced each other to take many outside jumpshots which were very low percentage. Dunman Sec did a really good job of coming in for offensive rebounds as when every shot went up, at least 2 players will go in to try to get offensive rebounds, making us pay if we did not box out properly. However, we managed to keep very close throughout 3 quarters as both teams took turns in taking the lead due to our 2-2-1 defense, getting us a total of 16 steals throughout the game. However, it is also worth noting that we committed a total of 24 turnovers as well, way more than the previous game against Bukit Panjang Government High.

In the 4th quarter, Dunman Secondary managed to break away a little bit to take a 5 point lead of 45-40 with only around 3 minutes left in the 4th quarter. In spite of this, our team did not give up and continued to fight hard to chip away at the lead. We got 2 three pointers on back to back offensive possessions to take the lead. After getting a stop on defense, we then scored yet another three pointer to extend our lead. We ended off the game on an 11-0 run which included 3 three pointers and a steal and layup to end it off. This was indeed encouraging for us as we were able to maintain our composure towards the end of the game and most importantly get the win.



Improvements


Turnovers was a huge downside of this game as we committed way too much. Most of it was because we were too panicky when facing the tough defense of Dunman Secondary. This resulted in a lot of bad passes and allowing them to convert on the fastbreak opportunities. We need to make sure our turnovers are at least less than 15. Taking care of the ball is definitely vital to winning games.

Next, perimeter shooting. We were horrible in shooting percentages in this game. We were only 8/28 (29%) from 2pt range and 10/45 (22%) from 3pt range. It was amazing that we still were able to come out with a win. However this has to change as we need to learn to get used to the rings in different environments quickly and not take too long a time to adjust. The longer we take to adjust our shots, the more we will miss out on opportunities to score.




Strengths


Once again our 2-2-1 defense did not disappoint as we were able to force most of their turnovers through this. We were able to press them for the whole game, wearing them out eventually in the 4th quarter. We definitely have to keep this up and continue to refine it. However we must remember 2 things.
1) First line has to force the ball handler to the sideline, do not let him cut middle
2) When the ball is at the sides, the players on the weakside have to rotate to the help line which is in line with the basket.

In this game, we were once again composed and fought hard to get back into the game and take the lead. We definitely need to keep this up as  it is this kind of composure that can allow us to win games.

Lastly, we rebounded well grabbing a total of 36 rebounds. Although there were indeed some balls where Dunman Secondary was able to grab the offensive rebound for an extra possession, we were able to do the same on the other side of the floor. We also minimised the number of offensive rebouds they had in this game significantly in comparison to the previous 3 games that we played against them.



So far we are 4-0 in all our friendly games played so far. While this is encouraging, we definitely cannot be complacent and continue to work harder as there are so many other aspects in which we need to improve on.