Zoel Lee (left) led Jurong with 15 points, including three 3-pointers. (Photo 1 © Les Tan/Red Sports)
Clementi Sports Complex, Tuesday, February 28, 2012 — New Town Secondary led for three quarters but it was Jurong Secondary that eventually won 44-39 to qualify for the final of the West Zone B Division Basketball Championship.
New Town led 13-7 after the first quarter and still managed to lead 22-16 at half time after both teams scored nine points each in the second.
Jurong outscored New Town 15-10 in the third quarter to trail by only one (31-32) going into the fourth quarter.
There was little to separate the two teams in the fourth and with two minutes left, Jurong held a slender one-point 37-36 lead.
That’s when it all started going wrong for New Town.
With one minute left on the clock, Zoel Lee (Jurong #11) poured in a 3-pointer to give his team a four-point 40-36 lead.
As New Town struggled to salvage the game, the Jurong point guard Tay Wee (#6) showed some skill to create an opening for teammate Ng Soon Seng (#15) to lay up for a 42-36 lead with 21 seconds left to effectively kill off the contest. Hanhs (Jurong #10) then added another two points for Jurong’s final basket.
A final 3-pointer by Kan Jin Wei (#11) for New Town could do little to stop Jurong winning it 44-39.
“We were nervous and didn’t dare to shoot or drive in,” said Jurong’s Zoel Lee of the team’s performance in the first three quarters. “We were trailing by 6 to 9 points but team work helped us to win this game.”
Jurong will face 2011 zonal champions Unity Secondary in the final for the third straight year. Last year, Jurong lost 54-84 but this year’s final is expected to be closer.
“We only lost to them [Unity] by two,” said Hanhs, referring to the Round 2, 37-39 loss earlier in the season. “We only have to worry about Delvin Goh.”
“We can smell a win against Unity if we play properly,” added Zoel.
Jurong have amassed a 10-1 win-loss record while Unity are a perfect 11-0 after beating Dunearn Secondary 55-47 in the other semi-final.
The final will be played Tuesday, March 6th, Jurong East Sports Complex, at 3pm.
West Zone B Division Basketball Championship — fixtures and results
Quarter by Quarter Scores
New Town vs Jurong
1st Q: 13-7
2nd Q: 9-9 (22-16)
3rd Q: 10-15 (32-31)
4th Q: 7-13 (39-44)
Top Scorers
New Town
Shawn Tay (#12) — 16 pts
Jurong
Zoel Lee (#11) — 15 pts (including 3 x 3-pointers)
Hanhs (#10) — 8 pts
Jurong Lineup
Sim Jiahao (#4), Jason Chua (#5), Tay Wee (#6), Jefferson Cheong (#7), Caleb Loh (#8), Leong Heng Wei (#9), Hanhs (#10), Zoel Lee (#11), Vickraam (#12), Chong Yihxuan (#13), Eric Tan (#14), Ng Soon Seng (#15)
New Town Lineup
Cheong Wei Lun (#4), Jeremy Koh (#5), Kennedy Toh (#6), Kelvin Lim (#7), Foo Chuan Shen (#8), Chua Cheng Wei (#9), Dawson Chng (#10), Kan Jin Wen (#11), Shawn Tay (#12), Choo Wei Wen (#13), Chia Siu Phang (#14), Fernando Leck (#15)
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