Story and photos by Lai Jun Wei/Red Sports.
Singapore Basketball Centre, Thursday, 21 August, 2008 - Unity Secondary have earned themselves a spot in the final after beating the Singapore Chinese Girls' School 45-37 in the semi-finals of the C Division Girls Basketball Championship. Unity had topped their group in the quarter-finals and had previously beaten SCGS 44-33 in the first round of the Nationals.
The jump ball went to SCGS, with Alana (SCGS, #10) having no problem tipping the ball to her own side. However, there was some fumbling and the ball fell into the hands of Unity. Diane (Unity, #10) opened the game with a 3-pointer for her team. SCGS was all pumped up as they stole possession of the ball several times for many shot attempts. To the delight of the SCGS supporters who lined the perimeter of the court, Alana (SCGS, #10) scored a layup soon after Diane's 3-pointer.
It seemed to be taking some time for Unity to warm up as they lagged behind for a few instances. Lacking the number of supporters that SCGS had, the Unity bench still showed their support for the team, shouting words of encouragement to them. With 2 min 45 sec left on the clock, there was a struggle for the ball at the SCGS defensive half. However, Yu Han (SCGS, #14) managed to steal the ball and dribbled it half way across the court before passing it team mate Alana (#10) who was wide open for a lay up opportunity.
However as she went up for the basket, she unfortunately missed her chance. All expecting Alana to have sunk the shot, there was no one on hand to catch the rebound. Li Jun (Unity, #14) promptly took the ball back to the SCGS defensive half for a shot attempt. With just a few minutes left on the clock, Li Jun (Unity, #14) was fouled for obstructing Umi (SCGS, #6). Umi was awarded one free throw, but her shot unfortunately hit the backboard and found its way into the waiting Unity players. Luckily, Alana managed to grab the ball and let off a shot. However, it was still unsuccessful as it bounced off the rim. This time, the Unity players firmly took hold of the ball and drove it back to their offensive half. Still, SCGS managed to sink in more shots as the first half ended 7-9 in favour of them.
As the second quarter started, Unity seemed to have found their footing as they started playing more aggressively. They defended tightly within the painted zone, preventing their opponents from getting a chance to score. Alana (SCGS, #10) led a charge and right before she went up for the basket, she passed the ball out to her team mate. As she quickly regained her footing to move into an empty space, she received the ball from her team mate and she jumped up for a shot. However, the shot was unsuccessful. With just five seconds left before a turnover, Athena (#11) grabbed the ball but she stepped out of bounds. The ball was awarded to Unity.
A time out was called, and Unity's coach rallied on his girls despite seeming quite frustrated at some errors made. Right after the time-out, Siti Amnah (Unity, #6) let loose a spectacular 3-pointer which put Unity in the lead at 14-13. With just 30 seconds left on the clock, SCGS was determined to hold on to their precious one point lead gained after Gladys (SCGS, #10) had scored three times earlier. As they went up for the basket, a mis-pass saw the ball found its way into Unity's hands, who took it back and scored through the hands of Li Jun (Unity, #14).
As the clock ticked down further, Diane (Unity, #10) managed to intercept one of SCGS's balls and attacked again. She threw the ball and it hit the inner rim, rolling within the basket. Everyone held their breath as they watched, but the ball spun out of the basket and SCGS grabbed hold of the ball to reorganise an attack. Gladys (SCGS, #8) was right under Unity's basket as she went up for a lay up. She managed to draw a foul which earned her team two free throws. Her first throw found it way into the basket, levelling the score at 23-23. Her second throw unfortunately bounced off the rim and was taken by Unity. Their attack was stopped short as the half time buzzer sounded.
The third quarter started with Unity turning defensive. The girls would bunch up in the paint to prevent their opponents from breaking through for layups. Their heavy defending forced the SCGS players to make long shots from the outside, which mostly could not find its way into the basket. Several penetrations were unsuccessful as the SCGS players were blocked by their opponents.
At times when the SCGS players charged through, they would be fouled, gifting Unity opportunities to score free throws after free throws. With 4 min and 53 seconds left on the clock, Umi (SCGS, #6) tried to make a 3-pointer, but it was unsuccessful. Alana (SCGS, #10) grabbed the ball and made a shot but she was called for travelling. With 3 min 11 seconds to go, Janice (Unity, #9) had possession of the ball and she made a long pass to her awaiting team mate near the half court line. However, the ball went out, much to the frustration of her coach.
Much of the action was focused in Unity's defensive half. However, the scoreboard hardly registered changes as many attacks by SCGS were unsuccessful. With just 1 min 50 seconds left on the clock, Jessie Foo (Unity, #7) got a break from the SCGS attack. She half-sprinted, half-dribbled all the way down the full length of the court for a layup attempt. However, Gladys (SCGS, #8) fouled her just as she was going up for the basket.
As the clock ticked on, tight Unity defending in the paint forced many 3-pointer attempts from SCGS, many which were unsuccessful. A serious foul was called against Jessie (Unity, #7), and was given a warning by the referee. Alana (SCGS, #10) received two free throw attempts from this foul which she converted one, reducing her team's score difference to just one point, 30-29. With just 12 seconds left, Ramona (Unity, #15) drew a foul from SCGS to earn two free throws. Both throws were unsuccessful.
As the clock ran down, Umi (SCGS, #6) jumped up for a 3-pointer. With just one second left, the ball hit the rim and bounced off right at the sound of the buzzer. Both teams would now enter the final quarter with Unity leading SCGS by just two points.
15 seconds in to the final quarter saw Unity make its first shot attempt. Pamela (Unity, #8) tried to shoot a 3-pointer but it failed. A solo sprint by Gladys (SCGS, #8) back to her team's offensive half saw her put in a lay up to tie the score at 31-31. Soon after, Janice (Unity, #9) barged through the SCGS defence to score another basket, allowing her team to lead again. A long pass by Alana (SCGS, #10) to her team mate #7 at the half court line saw her team mate successfully go for a lay up, tying the score again.
However, as the game wore on, SCGS began committing too many fouls, gifting Unity many free throw attempts. Though not many of them were converted, SCGS also could not score many points either, making the situation tense. By now, the SCGS supporters had gone almost silent, as they watched the game unfold, their hearts in their mouths. With 2 min 13 seconds left on the clock, a mis-pass by Alana (SCGS, #10) when she attempted to make another long pass saw it go into the hands of Diane (Unity, #10). Diane made no mistake, sinking this golden opportunity to bring her team's score to 42-35.
As the clock ticked down further, play was beginning to look aggressive. Alana (SCGS, #10) fouled Diane (Unity, #10) as the latter was trying to make a shot. Diane was awarded two free throws, but was unsuccessful in converting them. While catching the rebound, there was some fumbling as the players descended on the loose ball. The ball was passed out, and rolled out of bounds off Ramona's (Unity, #15) foot.
Desperation was in the SCGS players as they tried to break through and score. However, with their desperation they inevitably became rougher, committing even more fouls. With almost just a minute left on the clock, Athena (SCGS, #11) fouled Li Jun (Unity, #14), giving her opponent two free throw attempts. She missed her first shot, much to the relief of the SCGS supporters. However, Li Jun sank her second free throw, extending her team's lead to eight points. It was going to be a herculean task to catch up but SCGS pushed on.
Athena (SCGS, #11) had possession of the ball and was dribbling half way down the court. But before she could put more points on the scoreboard, she was hustled out of the court and possession was handed over to Unity. With just 35 seconds left, injury struck as Janice (Unity, #9) fell and injured her ankle. Though unfortunate, it seemed like it would not make much of an impact as there seemed to be no way for a SCGS comeback. Athena made one final push, passing to Gladys (SCGS, #8) to take a shot. However, their time was up and the final whistle sounded.
Disappointment could be seen in the SCGS players' faces as they shook the hands of the elated Unity players. SCGS would now play Raffles Girls' in the 3/4th placing match on Monday, 25 August at SBC. Unity will face Dunman Secondary for their final match on Tuesday, 26 August at Toa Payoh Sports Hall. Unity had beaten Dunman 47-34 in their quarter-final encounter and looks set to continue their winning streak. Good luck to all!
Top scorers:
Gladys (SCGS, #8) - 17 points
Diane (Unity, #10) - 13 points (one 3-pointer)
More pictures in the gallery.
Editor’s note: If you recognise yourself or your team mates in any of the photos, please feel free to leave the names behind in the comments section and we will update the captions accordingly. Thanks.
Dear athletes and readers, the next time you are at a game and see us at the game. Please do consider that we are trying to capture the game on our cameras. Due to safety reasons, we sometimes cannot be directly by the court (i.e. right at the line). If you see us with our cameras pointed at the action, PLEASE hold on till after we put down our camera before you cross our line of sight. Otherwise, we will have many shots like the one above, a perfectly good photo opportunity ruined by a person who didn’t have the courtesy to stop. Please also do hurry across as we cannot predict when the action will come again and we will have to raise our cameras to shoot again. I hope that I am not making an unreasonable request, but please do know that we are trying to cover the game for your reading and visual enjoyment. So, please understand our difficulty. Thanks!
and #10 is alana
Gladys is #8
nope,SC #14 is yuhan,
#11 is Athena
SCGS!!!!!!!!!
#6 – UMI
#11 – YUHAN
#14 – ATHENA
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
@justiceleague: Contact me at junwei@redsports.sg The email address you provided doesn’t seem to be working.
oh, yeah, if you don’t mind, can you send me the stats please 😀
@justiceleague: I acknowledge that everyone has contributed to scoring for their team. But the Top Scorers are just to reflect who are the ones who had scored the most points. If it would make everyone happier, I could include everyone’s name in and reflect how many points each and everyone scored. But wouldn’t it make those who didn’t play during the game feel a bit awkward?
With regards to your challenge on the stats of the game, I have a copy of the match stats and all the facts were based on that sheet of paper.
You: SCGS#11 scored 3/4 underbaskets and 1 3pt shot in the 1st half
Match stats: SCGS #11 scored 3 times. Two 2-point shots and one 3-pointer.
You: SCGS#7 also scored a layup in the 3rd quarter
Match stats: Only SCGS #14 and #11 scored. SCGS #10 scored two free throws.
You: #15 also scored many underbaskets and got many offensive rebounds.
Match stats: Yes it’s true she scored several points. Her total amount of points scored is 8 points. (4 free throws, two 2point shots) As for the offensive rebounds, there’s no way to tell so I can’t answer you on that.
It may seem that they scored several times because their play was just too good. But I guess the match stats don’t lie. If it will answer your doubts, I can send the match stats to you. Just contact me at junwei@redsports.sg
umm, if i don’t remember wrongly, SCGS#11 scored 3/4 underbaskets and 1 3pt shot in the 1st half. and umm, SCGS#7 also scored a layup in the 3rd quarter. and then for unity, i think #15 also scored many underbaskets and got many offensive rebounds.
@justiceleague: Junwei was taking pictures. It’s hard to remember how a game went when you are shooting.
So feel free to send in your version of the game. I am sure other readers will appreciate it as well.
junwei, i was watching this match and i realised that there were several other players from both schools who have scored many pts for their team as well, but i think its really unfair to them and that you should also mention their names and the number of pts they score.. cause by mentioning only 2 names from each school, its almost like giving them all the credit for their school’s win/lose and i think it’s really unfair to the other teamplayers.
UNITY #7 JESSIE FOO 🙂