Raffles Institution vs Yu Ying Secondary (49-24)
Points by Quarter:
1st 2nd 3rd 4th
RI-------11------20-----14------4
YYS-----3-------4-------6------11
We started off this game slow again as the score was at 2-2 for the first 5 mins of the game. However, we started to gain our momentum after an "And-one" basket from our captain Jovi which got us all pumped up while making the opponents confidence falter a little. We were able to finally get our offense going after that point and were really fortunate as YYS failed to convert on some looks inside that would have brought the game closer. We eventually got out to a first quarter lead of 11-3.
The second quarter of the game was when we really started to run away as we outscored them 20-4. We managed to get many looks inside the paint which we converted, and also connected on our shots from 3 pt range. Jovi was outstanding in the first half, as he scored all of his 14 points in the first half alone with an array of jumpshots, layups and free throws. Our PF Shao Jie racked up the assists as he was patient in the post and found Jovi on basket cuts to the rim for the easy lay up. Vice Captain Daran and Tristen did a great job of maintaining the pace during this quarter. Daran handled the ball well and found the open man while Tristen boosted our morale single-handedly with 2 three point plays in the quarter. With all these major contributors, we found ourselves with a 31-7 lead at the half.
In the 4th quarter however, our offense died down again as we could not score in the half court while fouling Yu Ying many times to put them on the line where they converted. We only managed to score through fast breaks when our forward Anli executed a beautiful in-out move for the lay up. Despite that highlight, we eventually lost the quarter 11-4. But still, the lead that we built throughout the 3 quarters was enough to see us through and we got the W.
This game allowed us to come out 2nd in our group behind ACS (Barker Road) and earned us a spot in the semi-finals which would be played against Fairfield on Monday. This win also got us into the Nationals which would be played after the zonal championships. Stay tuned for the report on Monday's game and do come down and support us if you have the time! Game will be played at CCAB.
Wednesday, February 26, 2014
Monday, February 24, 2014
B Division South Zone Round 2 Game 4: Raffles Institution vs Queenstown Secondary (60-15)
Raffles Institution vs Queenstown Secondary (60-15)
Points by Quarter
1st 2nd 3rd 4th
RI----24-------8------13-----15
QS----0-------9-------2-------4
After playing hard and just coming up short last friday against ACS (Barker Road), this game was a test for us to see if we could bounce back. And bounce back we did as we got out to an early lead and never looked back, not trailing for a single minute in the game.
The game started off with us getting steals and running out on the fastbreak, which accounted for most of our points. Even when we did not manage to get fastbreak opportunities, we still got deep into the paint for high percentage shots. This allowed us to score in bunches the moment the game started. In addition to that, we played solid defense, preventing easy cuts by the opponents as they frequently found themselves having to launch a bad shot with no time left on the shot clock. This allowed us to jump out to a huge lead in the first, 24-0, as we took away their confidence in winning the game.
The second quarter however was pretty badly played as after the 5 minute mark of the quarter, it seemed like our offense went stagnant and we could not buy a bucket. Our misses resulted in many fast break opportunities for the opponents which they converted easily. To compound our woes, we turned the ball over a lot from bad passes. This saw us eventually losing the quarter 9-8.
However in the second half, order was restored as we once again got our offense going by feeding the ball to the post players for shots around the hoop. We started to get our own share of fastbreak opportunities once again and thus we continued to extend the lead. In the end, we won the game by 45 points, 60-15.
This game was really a game to get us prepared to play Yu Ying Secondary on Wednesday. With a win, we would be advancing to the semi finals of the South Zone and earn a spot in the Nationals. Stay tuned for more!
Friday, February 21, 2014
B Division South Zone Round 2 Game 3: Raffles Institution vs ACS (Barker Road) (48-51)
Raffles Institution vs ACS (Barker Road) (48-51)
Points by Quarter
1st 2nd 3rd 4th
RI-------11------13-----12-----12
ACS----12-------17----12------10
This game started off with us trading baskets at an equal pace while maintaining our defense as we started getting into our offense early, hitting shots to open the game. We actually even had a 11-8 lead at the 2 minute mark of the 1st quarter, but Barker started generating offense by themselves by passing it to their point guard #11, to make plays or score points. This allowed them to eventually have the slight advantage over us, 12-11.
The 2nd and 3rd quarter were more of the same as we matched them pretty much point for point throughout this period of time. In the 3rd quarter, we were down by as much as 11 points at one point in time, due to us turning the ball over and allowing them to get easy fastbreaks on the other hand, which they were really good at. But we fought back to close the gap back to 5 by the end of the third, which was the lead they had originally during halftime.
Once we entered the 4th quarter, we continued to fight back and both sides traded many baskets. The Barker lead constantly fluctuated from 3 to 7 as it was a back and forth game. Eventually, it came down to a 3 pt game with more than a minute left on the clock. After running some time off the clock, #11 stepped back and calmly nailed a jumper to put them up by 5 once again. However, we did not falter and came back immediately the next possession with a layup on the other side to cut it back to 3 once again. There was 40 seconds left on the game clock and they drew a foul from us, resetting the shot clock back to 14. This burned more time for them and they eventually ran the clock down to 6 seconds before taking a long 3 that was an airball. Although they missed, we could not get the ball up the court in time to get a decent shot off, and ultimately lost by a margin of 3 pts.
Improvements
We have to handle the ball better and drive the defender when we are getting pressured as they often are off balance when they are pressuring us. If we had cut down on our turnovers, they would have had less fast break opportunities and we may have taken the game. We also got to dash back on defense to prevent fast break points.
Strengths
This was a game where we found our identity back after losing it for a period of time where we were not playing good basketball at all, making silly errors. In this game, we had an underdog status and did what we do best, Fight Back. We have not had such intensity ever since the season started and we finally got back our groove from our friendly games. Though this game resulted in a loss, we pulled the gap very close and this game served as a confidence booster to get us back into the style of playing that we wanted to be at.
Our next game will be on Monday against Queenstown Secondary. We will see if we can maintain the momentum and drive that we had today and carry it over to the rest of the games that we will play for the rest of the season.
Points by Quarter
1st 2nd 3rd 4th
RI-------11------13-----12-----12
ACS----12-------17----12------10
This game started off with us trading baskets at an equal pace while maintaining our defense as we started getting into our offense early, hitting shots to open the game. We actually even had a 11-8 lead at the 2 minute mark of the 1st quarter, but Barker started generating offense by themselves by passing it to their point guard #11, to make plays or score points. This allowed them to eventually have the slight advantage over us, 12-11.
The 2nd and 3rd quarter were more of the same as we matched them pretty much point for point throughout this period of time. In the 3rd quarter, we were down by as much as 11 points at one point in time, due to us turning the ball over and allowing them to get easy fastbreaks on the other hand, which they were really good at. But we fought back to close the gap back to 5 by the end of the third, which was the lead they had originally during halftime.
Once we entered the 4th quarter, we continued to fight back and both sides traded many baskets. The Barker lead constantly fluctuated from 3 to 7 as it was a back and forth game. Eventually, it came down to a 3 pt game with more than a minute left on the clock. After running some time off the clock, #11 stepped back and calmly nailed a jumper to put them up by 5 once again. However, we did not falter and came back immediately the next possession with a layup on the other side to cut it back to 3 once again. There was 40 seconds left on the game clock and they drew a foul from us, resetting the shot clock back to 14. This burned more time for them and they eventually ran the clock down to 6 seconds before taking a long 3 that was an airball. Although they missed, we could not get the ball up the court in time to get a decent shot off, and ultimately lost by a margin of 3 pts.
Improvements
We have to handle the ball better and drive the defender when we are getting pressured as they often are off balance when they are pressuring us. If we had cut down on our turnovers, they would have had less fast break opportunities and we may have taken the game. We also got to dash back on defense to prevent fast break points.
Strengths
This was a game where we found our identity back after losing it for a period of time where we were not playing good basketball at all, making silly errors. In this game, we had an underdog status and did what we do best, Fight Back. We have not had such intensity ever since the season started and we finally got back our groove from our friendly games. Though this game resulted in a loss, we pulled the gap very close and this game served as a confidence booster to get us back into the style of playing that we wanted to be at.
Our next game will be on Monday against Queenstown Secondary. We will see if we can maintain the momentum and drive that we had today and carry it over to the rest of the games that we will play for the rest of the season.
Wednesday, February 19, 2014
B Division South Zone Round 2 Game 2: Raffles Institution vs Guang Yang Secondary (31-18)
Raffles Institution vs Guang Yang Secondary (31-18)
Points by Quarter:
1st 2nd 3rd 4th
RI------3-------3------8------17
GYS---5-------6-------6------1
The game started off as both teams struggled to make a basket. We were plagued by turnovers the whole of the first half and although our defense was reasonably solid, we were way to passive on the offensive end, passing the ball around the perimeter instead of attacking the basket. Though we did not score much the first half, our defense kept the opponent's point total in check and we were only down by 5 by halftime, as the score was a miserable 11-6.
In the third quarter, we started to play even harder on defense and started to force some turnovers from Guang Yang, while taking care of the ball better. However, we still missed shots that would have been automatic for us and although we won the quarter 8-6, we still trailed 17-14 entering into the final period.
The 4th quarter was when we really got our momentum going and finally got our engines started. It started of with an "And-One" from our captain Jovi which got everyone fired up. Although he missed the free throw, we still were only down by 1 pt. We then committed a foul on our end, giving up one point to the opponents from free throws. Then a few possessions later, our Vice-captain Daran calmly drained a three pointer, giving us a 1 pt advantage. This was a huge shot and got the whole team fired up. This was a spark for us and eventually lead to 3 more three pointers and a layup, as we ended the game on a 17-1 run in the 4th quarter, pulling away for the win.
Improvements
We started off this game way too slow. We need to get into our offense quickly and capitalise on our make-able shots. Had we done this better today, the game would not have been so close to start with. We also have to be more aggressive in attacking the basket so that we can open up opportunities to score not only for ourselves, but for our teammates as well.
Strengths
We remained composed in the last quarter and we were resilient, fighting all the way to the final buzzer instead of giving up halfway. As the game progressed, we got more and more comfortable playing and eventually allowed us to pull away. This was the second game this season where we remained composed in the last quarter and came through with timely big shots.
Our next game will be on Friday against ACS (Barker Road). It would be a great test for us and we must embrace it. Game will be played at 3:30pm. Stay tuned!
Points by Quarter:
1st 2nd 3rd 4th
RI------3-------3------8------17
GYS---5-------6-------6------1
The game started off as both teams struggled to make a basket. We were plagued by turnovers the whole of the first half and although our defense was reasonably solid, we were way to passive on the offensive end, passing the ball around the perimeter instead of attacking the basket. Though we did not score much the first half, our defense kept the opponent's point total in check and we were only down by 5 by halftime, as the score was a miserable 11-6.
In the third quarter, we started to play even harder on defense and started to force some turnovers from Guang Yang, while taking care of the ball better. However, we still missed shots that would have been automatic for us and although we won the quarter 8-6, we still trailed 17-14 entering into the final period.
The 4th quarter was when we really got our momentum going and finally got our engines started. It started of with an "And-One" from our captain Jovi which got everyone fired up. Although he missed the free throw, we still were only down by 1 pt. We then committed a foul on our end, giving up one point to the opponents from free throws. Then a few possessions later, our Vice-captain Daran calmly drained a three pointer, giving us a 1 pt advantage. This was a huge shot and got the whole team fired up. This was a spark for us and eventually lead to 3 more three pointers and a layup, as we ended the game on a 17-1 run in the 4th quarter, pulling away for the win.
Improvements
We started off this game way too slow. We need to get into our offense quickly and capitalise on our make-able shots. Had we done this better today, the game would not have been so close to start with. We also have to be more aggressive in attacking the basket so that we can open up opportunities to score not only for ourselves, but for our teammates as well.
Strengths
We remained composed in the last quarter and we were resilient, fighting all the way to the final buzzer instead of giving up halfway. As the game progressed, we got more and more comfortable playing and eventually allowed us to pull away. This was the second game this season where we remained composed in the last quarter and came through with timely big shots.
Our next game will be on Friday against ACS (Barker Road). It would be a great test for us and we must embrace it. Game will be played at 3:30pm. Stay tuned!
Monday, February 17, 2014
B Division South Zone Round 2 Game 1: Raffles Institution vs St Andrews Secondary (56-38)
Raffles Institution vs St Andrews Secondary (56-38)
Points by Quarter:
1st 2nd 3rd 4th
RI--------13------19-----13------11
SA--------7-------8-------7------16
The second round of the South Zone competitions started off with a game against St Andrews Secondary. We did not have much of a size advantage in this game as St Andrews had 4 big post players to match whatever height that we ourselves had to offer. However, we had scouted our opponents and were ready for whatever was coming.
With that being said, the game started off rather slow for both teams as both teams struggled to make baskets. For both teams, the majority of the points in the first quarter came from free throws, which slowed down the game a lot. However, we were still able to jump out to a 13-7 lead before closing the first.
The second quarter began and we started to find our groove as we got our hands on the passing lanes and were well prepared to stop their sideline and inbound plays from successfully working out. We forced many turnovers and got out on the break to get easy baskets to extend the lead. This saw us leading 32-15 at halftime.
In the 4th quarter however, we started to get a little complacent as we had done in previous matches and let our guard down as we started to commit almost half our total turnovers in the game in the 4th alone. This allowed the opponents to get easy layups on the other hand and boosted their morale by a little. However, it was too little too late as the lead that we had accumulated through 3 quarters was big enough to see us through the late run by St Andrews, allowing us to seal the game 56-38.
Improvements
We need to learn to box out more efficiently, especially when we are playing opponents that rely on one or two players to rebound or are bigger than us size wise. This game was a good lesson and reminder to us that we need to not only box out, but continue to push our opponents away from the basket after our box out to increase the amount of space we have to grab the rebound. In this game, we did not push after boxing out, resulting in the opponents tall post players grabbing the rebound, keeping the ball high and finishing.
Strengths
We were able to draw a lot of fouls in this game as we forced the opponents to commit 23 fouls while only getting 8 fouls ourselves. We also were able to get their key player #14 into quick foul trouble as he accumulated 3 fouls midway through the second quarter. We got them over the foul limit early and this allowed us to have many chances at the line, which we were able to convert on 24/35 of our free throw attempts. This is an encouraging sign from us and a weapon we can use for future games.
Our next game will be on Wednesday against Guang Yang Secondary followed by a Friday game against ACS (Barker Road) which should be an interesting game. Do stay tuned for more updates!
Points by Quarter:
1st 2nd 3rd 4th
RI--------13------19-----13------11
SA--------7-------8-------7------16
The second round of the South Zone competitions started off with a game against St Andrews Secondary. We did not have much of a size advantage in this game as St Andrews had 4 big post players to match whatever height that we ourselves had to offer. However, we had scouted our opponents and were ready for whatever was coming.
With that being said, the game started off rather slow for both teams as both teams struggled to make baskets. For both teams, the majority of the points in the first quarter came from free throws, which slowed down the game a lot. However, we were still able to jump out to a 13-7 lead before closing the first.
The second quarter began and we started to find our groove as we got our hands on the passing lanes and were well prepared to stop their sideline and inbound plays from successfully working out. We forced many turnovers and got out on the break to get easy baskets to extend the lead. This saw us leading 32-15 at halftime.
In the 4th quarter however, we started to get a little complacent as we had done in previous matches and let our guard down as we started to commit almost half our total turnovers in the game in the 4th alone. This allowed the opponents to get easy layups on the other hand and boosted their morale by a little. However, it was too little too late as the lead that we had accumulated through 3 quarters was big enough to see us through the late run by St Andrews, allowing us to seal the game 56-38.
Improvements
We need to learn to box out more efficiently, especially when we are playing opponents that rely on one or two players to rebound or are bigger than us size wise. This game was a good lesson and reminder to us that we need to not only box out, but continue to push our opponents away from the basket after our box out to increase the amount of space we have to grab the rebound. In this game, we did not push after boxing out, resulting in the opponents tall post players grabbing the rebound, keeping the ball high and finishing.
Strengths
We were able to draw a lot of fouls in this game as we forced the opponents to commit 23 fouls while only getting 8 fouls ourselves. We also were able to get their key player #14 into quick foul trouble as he accumulated 3 fouls midway through the second quarter. We got them over the foul limit early and this allowed us to have many chances at the line, which we were able to convert on 24/35 of our free throw attempts. This is an encouraging sign from us and a weapon we can use for future games.
Our next game will be on Wednesday against Guang Yang Secondary followed by a Friday game against ACS (Barker Road) which should be an interesting game. Do stay tuned for more updates!
Thursday, February 13, 2014
B Div South Zone Round 1 Game 4: Raffles Institution vs Catholic High School (44-40)
Raffles Institution vs Catholic High School (44-40)
Points by Quarter:
1st 2nd 3rd 4th
RI-------15-------14-------9-------6
CH------11--------8------12-------9
This was the final game of the first round. Although the game was somewhat insignificant with both teams already guaranteed a spot in the second round, it was still important as this game decided our seedings which could greatly benefit us in the second round, should we be able to lock up the first seed.
The game started off with both teams firing shots without hesitation. Catholic High used their Full court man on man defense throughout all 4 quarters in this game. This caused us a little bit of trouble as there were times where we found ourselves dribbling too much, creating turnovers for ourselves. However despite this, we still managed to score by driving to the basket and taking outside shots, giving us the lead by the end of the first quarter.
In the second quarter, we finally broke off and got ourselves some breathing space as we continued to take advantage of their over aggressive defense to cut to the basket for lay ins. Catholic High on the other hand went through a bit of a scoring drought, which allowed us to stretch the lead to 10 by the end of the first half.
However in the 3rd quarter, Catholic High started to step up their defense to a higher intensity as many fouls started to be called on them. In retaliation, our players also started to accumulate fouls while trying to match their intensity. Both sides were still able to score points, but Catholic High had the slight advantage, winning the quarter by 3. The vital point however, was that our key players Jovi and Shao Jie had 4 fouls apiece and were one away from fouling out.
In the fourth quarter, Our offense went stagnant throughout the first 7 mins of the quarter as it seemed like we could not get any offense going. Catholic High on the other hand started to slowly but surely chip away on our lead. To compound our woes, Shao Jie fouled out at the 8 minute mark of the game. This boosted the morale of the other team. Before we knew it, our lead was down to 1 by the 3 minute mark of the 4th quarter. After our opponents failed to convert on a few easy baskets inside the paint, we brought the ball down the court and managed to swing it around the perimeter, with the ball eventually ending up in the hands of Tristen, one of the two point guards we had on the floor at that moment. He gathered himself and calmly sunk a three pointer, giving us a 4 point lead, shifting the momentum back to our side. This was a huge shot and quietened the oppositions bench down a little. Shortly after, we managed to get in possession of the ball, got fouled and converted on a free throw to make it a 5 point game. Catholic High responded with a quick 3 to get them back within 2, but fouled us again to stop the clock. This happened another time but Catholic High could not score the second attempt and had to foul again. We converted on 1/2 free throws each time we got fouled and time expired with us escaping with a 2 point lead.
Improvements
We have to cut down on our fouls as this is crucial giving the other team an advantage, while at the same time giving us foul trouble and may lead to disqualification. We really escaped with this win despite our key player fouling out.
Strengths
We managed to play solid defense throughout the winding minutes of the 4th quarter, preventing a possible comeback from our opponents. We need to play this kind of defense throughout all 4 quarters for us to improve.
The first round concluded with us ending up with a 4-0 record, best in the group earning us the first seed. We will see who we play next in the second round. Until then, stay tuned!
Points by Quarter:
1st 2nd 3rd 4th
RI-------15-------14-------9-------6
CH------11--------8------12-------9
This was the final game of the first round. Although the game was somewhat insignificant with both teams already guaranteed a spot in the second round, it was still important as this game decided our seedings which could greatly benefit us in the second round, should we be able to lock up the first seed.
The game started off with both teams firing shots without hesitation. Catholic High used their Full court man on man defense throughout all 4 quarters in this game. This caused us a little bit of trouble as there were times where we found ourselves dribbling too much, creating turnovers for ourselves. However despite this, we still managed to score by driving to the basket and taking outside shots, giving us the lead by the end of the first quarter.
In the second quarter, we finally broke off and got ourselves some breathing space as we continued to take advantage of their over aggressive defense to cut to the basket for lay ins. Catholic High on the other hand went through a bit of a scoring drought, which allowed us to stretch the lead to 10 by the end of the first half.
However in the 3rd quarter, Catholic High started to step up their defense to a higher intensity as many fouls started to be called on them. In retaliation, our players also started to accumulate fouls while trying to match their intensity. Both sides were still able to score points, but Catholic High had the slight advantage, winning the quarter by 3. The vital point however, was that our key players Jovi and Shao Jie had 4 fouls apiece and were one away from fouling out.
In the fourth quarter, Our offense went stagnant throughout the first 7 mins of the quarter as it seemed like we could not get any offense going. Catholic High on the other hand started to slowly but surely chip away on our lead. To compound our woes, Shao Jie fouled out at the 8 minute mark of the game. This boosted the morale of the other team. Before we knew it, our lead was down to 1 by the 3 minute mark of the 4th quarter. After our opponents failed to convert on a few easy baskets inside the paint, we brought the ball down the court and managed to swing it around the perimeter, with the ball eventually ending up in the hands of Tristen, one of the two point guards we had on the floor at that moment. He gathered himself and calmly sunk a three pointer, giving us a 4 point lead, shifting the momentum back to our side. This was a huge shot and quietened the oppositions bench down a little. Shortly after, we managed to get in possession of the ball, got fouled and converted on a free throw to make it a 5 point game. Catholic High responded with a quick 3 to get them back within 2, but fouled us again to stop the clock. This happened another time but Catholic High could not score the second attempt and had to foul again. We converted on 1/2 free throws each time we got fouled and time expired with us escaping with a 2 point lead.
Improvements
We have to cut down on our fouls as this is crucial giving the other team an advantage, while at the same time giving us foul trouble and may lead to disqualification. We really escaped with this win despite our key player fouling out.
Strengths
We managed to play solid defense throughout the winding minutes of the 4th quarter, preventing a possible comeback from our opponents. We need to play this kind of defense throughout all 4 quarters for us to improve.
The first round concluded with us ending up with a 4-0 record, best in the group earning us the first seed. We will see who we play next in the second round. Until then, stay tuned!
Tuesday, February 11, 2014
B Division South Zone Round 1 Game 3: Raffles Institution vs NJC (83-25)
Raffles Institution vs NJC (83-25)
Scoring by Quarter
National Junior College vs Raffles Institution
1st Quarter: 6–19
2nd Quarter: 7–22 (13–41)
3rd Quarter: 4–18 (17–59)
4th Quarter: 8–24 (25–83)
In the 3rd game of the first round, we faced NJC. If we were
to come out victorious in this game, we would be guaranteed a second round
spot. Hence we came out with a sense of urgency and made sure we got out to a
sizable lead and not look back.
Much like the previous game against Bukit Merah, we used our
length and size to our advantage as we continuously racked up steals while
keeping our own turnovers at a low rate. We accumulated 27 steals in this game
while only committing 8 turnovers. This was the story of the game as we
continuously forced turnovers and got out on the fastbreak every chance we got.
This resulted in us getting many easy baskets while the opponents rarely had
such opportunities as we always had time to set up our full court press after
our scores. Hence we lead throughout the whole game and came out with the win
by a big margin of 83-25.
Improvements
Although we had a size advantage this game, the opponents
still had 2 big men inside and these 2 posts fought very hard for rebounds. We
were unable to box them out on some possessions, giving them an opportunity to
try at the basket again which could cost us dearly in future matches albeit not
having any detrimental consequences in this game. We need to learn how to box
out on every single possession.
Strengths
Once again we were able to disrupt the opposing team's
offense with some solid defense, and this resulted in us getting more fast
break points, which would be crucial for us to continue to do in future
matches. We have to keep the steal numbers high, but have to be careful not to
foul too much in the process or get ourselves out of position unnecessarily.
Although this was not really a close game, and we got the
win, we cannot be complacent especially with our next opponents being Catholic
High, a championship contender. The Catholic High match will be our last match
of the first round as both Catholic High and Raffles Institution are fighting
for the top spot in the group. The upcoming game will definitely be an exciting
one and will be a good chance for us to gain many learning points to go deeper
into the season.
Sunday, February 2, 2014
B Division South Zone Round 1 Game 2: Raffles Institution vs Bukit Merah Secondary (85-19)
Raffles Institution vs Bukit Merah Secondary (85-19)
Points by Quarter:
1st-------2nd-------3rd-------4th
Raffles Institution--------17--------15--------27-------26
Bukit Merah--------------3---------5---------2--------9
In the second game of the first round, we faced a familiar foe in Bukit Merah Secondary. We have faced each other in the first round of the zonals for 3 straight years. Although we had won previous meetings, we were reminded not to be complacent and continue to go out strong and play hard defense.
The first quarter began with a bucket scored on the very first possession by us. Our offense was very smooth as we could constantly get inside the paint for easy layups, taking advantage of our height against the shorter players from the opposing team. This saw us jump out to an early lead, as we ended the first up 17-3. The second half was more of the same as we constantly attacked the paint while forcing Bukit Merah to shoot outside jump shots. At the half, the score was 32-8.
The 3rd quarter was the most well played in this game as we managed to score 27 points while only allowing them to score 2 points on us. This was mostly due to our full court pressure defense as we managed to get tons of steals in the front court, converting them to layups immediately after the steal. Our center Danny played a huge role in this 27-2 run as he single handedly racked up 10 steals by himself in the whole game, to go along with his 11 points. Most of his steals came in this 3rd quarter, as it seemed like as long as he raised up his long arms, he would get his hand on the ball and get the steal.
Shao Jie and Jovi were dominant on the glass in this game as they managed to grab 10 rebounds and 9 rebounds respectively. Whats more is that they had a total of 17 offensive rebounds out of the 19 rebounds that they grabbed. (9 Shao Jie, 8 Jovi). We need to keep this aggressiveness up.
Improvements
We need to make sure we capitalise on every layup that we take as we cannot afford to keep missing open looks under the basket against stronger teams. In this game, due to our height advantage, we were able to grab the offensive rebound even after we missed the layup until we eventually scored. This would definitely be hard against stronger teams with inside presence.
Strengths
We did a great job on the free throw line in this game, largely thanks to Shao Jie as he was a stellar 9/11 from the free throw line as he was always aggressive, drawing fouls on the Bukit Merah players. This resulted in 2 of the Bukit Merah players fouling out eventually. But as a whole, we still did well from the line as we were 14/19 as a team. We need to keep this up
We kept the turnovers in this game way down to only 9, while also racking up a total of 38 steals, the highest we have gotten through all the games we had played so far. Although this will most likely not recur against better teams, we need to constantly be alert in intercepting passes from our opponents.
We will be playing NJC in the third game of the 1st round, followed by Catholic High in the finale. Stay tuned!
Points by Quarter:
1st-------2nd-------3rd-------4th
Raffles Institution--------17--------15--------27-------26
Bukit Merah--------------3---------5---------2--------9
In the second game of the first round, we faced a familiar foe in Bukit Merah Secondary. We have faced each other in the first round of the zonals for 3 straight years. Although we had won previous meetings, we were reminded not to be complacent and continue to go out strong and play hard defense.
The first quarter began with a bucket scored on the very first possession by us. Our offense was very smooth as we could constantly get inside the paint for easy layups, taking advantage of our height against the shorter players from the opposing team. This saw us jump out to an early lead, as we ended the first up 17-3. The second half was more of the same as we constantly attacked the paint while forcing Bukit Merah to shoot outside jump shots. At the half, the score was 32-8.
The 3rd quarter was the most well played in this game as we managed to score 27 points while only allowing them to score 2 points on us. This was mostly due to our full court pressure defense as we managed to get tons of steals in the front court, converting them to layups immediately after the steal. Our center Danny played a huge role in this 27-2 run as he single handedly racked up 10 steals by himself in the whole game, to go along with his 11 points. Most of his steals came in this 3rd quarter, as it seemed like as long as he raised up his long arms, he would get his hand on the ball and get the steal.
Shao Jie and Jovi were dominant on the glass in this game as they managed to grab 10 rebounds and 9 rebounds respectively. Whats more is that they had a total of 17 offensive rebounds out of the 19 rebounds that they grabbed. (9 Shao Jie, 8 Jovi). We need to keep this aggressiveness up.
Improvements
We need to make sure we capitalise on every layup that we take as we cannot afford to keep missing open looks under the basket against stronger teams. In this game, due to our height advantage, we were able to grab the offensive rebound even after we missed the layup until we eventually scored. This would definitely be hard against stronger teams with inside presence.
Strengths
We did a great job on the free throw line in this game, largely thanks to Shao Jie as he was a stellar 9/11 from the free throw line as he was always aggressive, drawing fouls on the Bukit Merah players. This resulted in 2 of the Bukit Merah players fouling out eventually. But as a whole, we still did well from the line as we were 14/19 as a team. We need to keep this up
We kept the turnovers in this game way down to only 9, while also racking up a total of 38 steals, the highest we have gotten through all the games we had played so far. Although this will most likely not recur against better teams, we need to constantly be alert in intercepting passes from our opponents.
We will be playing NJC in the third game of the 1st round, followed by Catholic High in the finale. Stay tuned!
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