Republic Poly falter to give Nanyang 67-71 victory in men’s POL-ITE basketball

Story by REDintern Gerald Goh. Photos by Koh Yizhe/Red Sports

Republic Polytechnic Competition Hall, Wednesday, August 5, 2009 - A bombardment of three-point shots by Republic Polytechnic (RP) set up a commanding 18-point lead over Nanyang Polytechnic (NYP) but it was undone in the end by a combination of RP's over-confidence and NYP's never-say-die attitude.

RP's Ng Shi Yang scored an incredible 14 points in the third quarter to put RP in a comfortable spot as NYP's shooting accuracy was mired in the doldrums, but the situation reversed itself late on as RP's offense lost focus, allowing NYP back into the game.

NYP's dominance of the first quarter saw them establish a 20-15 lead. RP gradually made up the ground on the opponents thereafter, Law Wei Song posting an easy basket to give RP their first lead of the game at 27-25 as NYP gradually lost their early momentum.

RP's Ben Lim then got fouled twice in quick succession, but missed all his free-throws. Team-mate Tan Yuan Chao got on a fast break to lay-up the ball, before Hu Kai Wei made two of two from the free-throw line to deliver RP a 33-25 lead after the first half.

With NYP failing to make their field goals, it was left to Shi Yang to demonstrate a lesson. From the same spot on the three-point arc, the SP shooting guard netted a total of eight points, only being denied maximum points for a left foot inside the arc for the first shot. Shi Yang would go on to sink two more shots from downtown, as RP rang up an imposing 48-33 lead.

Shi Yang then received a cross-court pass from Seah Bao Hui, only to inexplicably fling it behind his back to no-one in particular, a worrying sign of overconfidence. With less than two minutes to the end of the third period, NYP went on an 8-point run, Gordon Ho's stationary shot bringing NYP to within seven points of RP.

NYP were now in the ascendancy, Lam Chun Yin's aggressive drive to the basket typifying their renewed drive and motivation. NYP's Yeo Rong Tian was fortunate to escape more severe censure after raising a leg to challenge Ben Lim, who nevertheless got off a shot before hitting the floor hard.

Undeterred, Rong Tian proceeded to muscle past two markers to give NYP back the lead at 54-53. Bao Hui uncharacteristically gave the ball away to NYP's Zhou Zhen Jie, before team-mate Khoo Da Wei looped a 20-footer over RP's Samuel Goh, the tallest player on the court, to give NYP a 59-55 lead.

With RP wasting chances, Tan Yuan Chao stole possession from NYP's Ng Wee Kim, but was dramatically rejected by Rong Tian as he attempted a lay-up. RP's Pang Yee Wei picked up a loose ball inside the final seconds to execute a turn-around jumper, but ultimately to no avail as RP lost out 61-67 to NYP.

NYP's Zhou Zhen Jie was circumspect of his side's efforts during the match, possibly reflecting RP's dominance during the second and third quarters. "RP fought very well… our shooting percentage was too low, we kept missing three-pointers. In fact we also missed easy balls in the (restricted) area."