Woodgrove Secondary beat Ahmad Ibrahim in clash of titans in B Division Girls North Zone basketball semi-final

Story by REDintern Alan Chiang. Photos by Vanessa Lim/Red Sports.

Singapore Basketball Centre, Monday, March 2, 2009 - Woodgrove Secondary were brought to life after the half-time break to overcome Ahmad Ibrahim Secondary 69-50 in their girls’ B Division Basketball Championship semi-final.

The Woodgrove patience and determined play came good as Huimin (Woodgrove #7) contributed 26 points with 14 of them in the final quarter as they surged forward in the later part of the match. Three other starters got double figures as Shamirah (Woodgrove #15), Huixian (Woodgrove #9) and Erra (Woodgrove #12) added 14, 12 and 10 points respectively in the victory.

The height difference was obvious as Woodgrove centre Erra (Woodgrove #12) won the tip-off easily and began the match confidently to lead 6-2 after five minutes of play.

With 5:33 left in the first quarter, Ahmad Ibrahim coach called for a time-out to strategize his team's formation. It had its desired effect and Ahmad Ibrahim levelled the match at 7-7. Soon after, they were leading by five points after Jing Ying (AI, #11) converted her second 3-pointer of the quarter and Anzie ´s (AI, #7) shot under the basket. Woodgrove edged ahead 14-13 at the end of the first quarter after Huixian (Woodgrove, #9) managed to make two free throws.

The second quarter witnessed both sides exchanging leads throughout. With 3:24 remaining, Huixian (Woodgrove, #9) collected her fourth foul on Anzie (AI, #7) and had to sit down for the rest of the quarter. The match was stalled for a moment after Anzie (AI, #7) appeared to twist her knee.

Chulin (AI, #9) then drained an impossible basket with the shot clock ticking away and both sides went into the break level at 25-25.

Ahmad Ibrahim started the third quarter with a burst of fire as they went on an 8-0 run with Anzie (AI, #7) leading the charge. But Huimin (Woodgrove, #7) and Shamirah (Woodgrove, #15) replied with points in the paint and cut the Ahmad Ibrahim's lead to four points at 33-29.

With 4:31 remaining, Vanessa (AI, #10) picked up her fourth foul after committing an offence on Huimin (Woodgrove #7). Huimin (Woodgrove, #7) then continued her scoring streak as she reduced the deficit to two points.

Woodgrove managed to grab the lead as Erra (Woodgrove, #12) dominated the offensive board and got second chance points with ease. Their sheer willpower allowed them to extend the lead to four points by the end of the third quarter, 41-37.

Woodgrove did not look back as they began the final quarter strongly. The Woodgrove twin towers of Erra (Woodgrove, #12) and Shamirah (Woodgrove, #15) were influential as they dominated the board and the paint.

The match was over after Woodgrove stretched their lead to 16 points at 65-49. Huimin ´s (Woodgrove, #7) massive points haul in the final quarter finished any chance of a revival from Ahmad Ibrahim.

"It was a hard fight. It was the fighting spirit in the last quarter that allowed us to win the match," said Woodgrove's teacher-in-charge, who was happy with the victory. "I think this is the kind of fighting spirit we should instill in every student these days."

After the match, top scorer Huimin (Woodgrove #7) said, "I want to win. I hope we can be the champion."

With the victory, they advance to the final where they will square off with Yishun Town Secondary for the B Division Girls North Zone basketball crown.

Match Statistics:
Scores by quarter:
Ahmad Ibrahim – Woodgrove
1st Q: 14 - 13
2nd Q: 25 - 25
3rd Q: 37 - 41
4th Q: 50 - 69

Top scorers
Ahmad Ibrahim:
Anzie (#7) - 17 points
Jing Ying (#11) - 16 points

Woodgrove:
#7 - 26 points
#15 - 14 points