Story by Zachary Foo/Red Sports. Photos by Lim Yong Teck/Red Sports, REDinterns Laura Lee and Soh Jun Wei
Ang Zi Yang (Bukit Panjang #4) goes for the layup against Leon Chin (Unity #14). Zi Yang scored 17 points and was awarded Most Valuable Player honours. (Photo 1 © Lim Yong Teck/Red Sports)
Jurong East Sports and Recreation Centre, Monday, March 10, 2014 — Bukit Panjang Government High (BP) claimed its first zonal title in a long while by beating Unity Secondary 83–67 in the West Zone B Division Boys Basketball Championship.
Thng Yong-An (Unity #5) led all scorers with 21 points, while Rengarajan Vignesh (Bukit Panjang #11) contributed 18 points in his team’s win. Ang Zi Yang (Bukit Panjang #4) was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) in the match.
Both teams met previously in the second round, where Unity emerged 84–71 winners. Bukit Panjang’s win ended two Unity streaks. Firstly, they halted Unity’s 11-match winning streak stretching from the first round. Secondly, they ended Unity’s four-year grasp on the zonal title since 2010.
The match was exciting from the get go, with both sides of supporters fervently cheering on the teams. Bukit Panjang got off to a great start, taking advantage of shaky shooting from Unity to post a 7–0 run. Shawn Ee (Bukit Panjang #7) gave Unity fits in the post, using his size to grab rebounds over the shorter Unity players. Despite this, Unity fought back to take a 19–15 first quarter lead. Yong-An (Unity #5) and Jacinth (Unity #10) fueled Unity’s offence, both accounting for all the points in the period.
Good post defence was the key for Bukit Panjang in the second quarter. Each time Unity cut into the paint, they were met by a sea of Bukit Panjang players contesting their lay up. This resulted in multiple misses, causing an offensive drought on Unity’s side. Bukit Panjang created enough on offence to take a five-point lead at the break, led by the scoring of Jerald (Bukit Panjang #13) and Zi Yang (Bukit Panjang #4).
Vignesh (#11) was crucial for Bukit Panjang in the third quarter, scoring 13 points. He was dominant in the open court, using his athleticism to score over the outstretched arms of the Unity players. His display helped Bukit Panjang extend the lead to eight points at the end of the quarter.
Wasted opportunities was the story of Unity’s game in the final quarter. They failed to score on several open layups, denting their chances of making a comeback each time. John Christopher (Unity #6) and Yong-An (Unity #5) tried to pull Unity back with three-pointers, but they were unsuccessful. Bukit Panjang were cruising by this point, leading by 17 with a minute left in the game. Overcome by the emotions of finally claiming their first zonal title, the Bukit Panjang players started celebrating, drawing loud cheers from the crowd. They sealed the game 83–67, ending Unity’s four-year streak.
Bukit Panjang captain, Dini Matin (#8), said, “It was a really big jump for us to reach the finals, since we got knocked out of the first round last year. We are really excited to win. We beat Jurong in the semi-final too, which we have never done before. I think our communication and defence was really good today. We focused throughout and that brought us the win. We look forward to nationals. We know the matches will be tougher and we will train harder for it.”
Scoring by Quarter
Unity Secondary vs Bukit Panjang Govt High
1st Quarter: 19–15
2nd Quarter: 11–20 (30–35)
3rd Quarter: 19–22 (49–57)
4th Quarter: 18–26 (67–83)
Top Scorers
Unity
Thng Yong-An (#5) – 21 points
Jacinth Figueroa Aban (#10) – 18 points
Bukit Panjang
Rengarajan Vignesh (#11) – 18 points
Ang Zi Yang (#4) – 17 points
Jerald Goh Jun Hao (#13) – 14 points
Unity Roster
Maung Khant Htet (#4), Thng Yong-An (#5), Caraig John Christopher Bico (#6), Foo Jun Lin (#7), Lee Ko Vic Ariel Nestor (#8), Tan Min Hui (#9), Jacinth Figueroa Aban (#10), Caraig David Martin Bico (#11), Matthew Choo Ming-En (#12), Maverick Jercel E. Dasig (#13), Leon Chin Wei Chen (#14), Shahrul B Ramdan (#15)
Bukit Panjang Roster
Ang Zi Yang (#4), Edmund Leong En Ming (#5), Lim Xiu Wei (#6), Shawn Ee Guan Aik (#7), Dini Matin B Zaini (#8), Shibukawa Youhei (#9), Tan Jia You (#10), Rengarajan Vignesh (#11), Yong Jun Wei (#12), Jerald Goh Jun Hao (#13), Low Wei Jie (#14), Tee Zhi Zhang (#15)
West Zone B Division Boys Basketball Championship — Fixtures and Results
[…] This is the third time that both teams have faced each other this season. The series was tied at 1–1 prior to this game. Unity won the first matchup in the second round of the West Zone Championship 84–71. Bukit Panjang took the second game, beating Unity in the West Zone final 83–67. […]