Story by Jiexin Neo/Red Sports. Photos by Clara Yuan/Red Sports

BBALL-ADIV-BOYS-MI-VS-NJC-3

Jiacheng (MI#12) aims for the net. (Photo 1 © Clara Yuan/Red Sports)

Singapore Basketball Centre, Wednesday, April 9, 2014 — National Junior College (NJC) pulled away in the final quarter of the game to beat Millennia Institute (MI) 53–36 in the opening game of the National A Division Boys Basketball Championship.

Wang Jia Yuan (NJC #13) paced his team with 11 points, while Moshu (MI #7) had a game-high 12 points.

NJC took on an early 7–2 lead when MI poured in two baskets straight to cut the deficit to one point. The scores continued to remain close throughout the first quarter as both teams alternated to score. NJC managed a 10–7 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Three minutes into the second quarter, MI were trailing 7–10 when Moshu (#7)’s composed 3-pointer allowed them to draw even with NJC (10–10). For the rest of the quarter, MI took some good shots but they just did not fall. On the other hand, NJC played with good defensive efforts and earned several transition offenses. They also held most of the possession.

Towards the end of the first half, MI managed to catch up to 21–21 with Jasper (#4)’s free throw and Collin (#11)’s offensive rebound conversion. However, Tay Kang Ming (NJC #6) scored the final basket to give NJC the lead going into the break (23–21).

MI had their first lead of the game at the start of the third quarter, when Weiyang (#8) scored a three on the wing (24–23). They tried to extend their lead but NJC retaliated with aggressive defence in the paint. Wang Jia Yuan (NJC #13) and Jerome Tan (NJC #15) were crucial for NJC with their offensive rebounds this quarter.

MI led throughout the third, but with one minute to go, NJC levelled with MI 30–30 when Alden Lim (#4) converted a free throw. They grabbed another easy two points when Jerome (NJC #15) scored on a fast break. With that NJC led 32–30 going into the decisive final quarter.

NJC continued with their good interceptions, and also took down most of the boards. Their interceptions kicked off a series of fast breaks and they managed to take on a 10-point lead midway through the last quarter (42–32). Towards the end, NJC registered a 11–4 scoring run to defeat MI 53–36 in the opening game of their season.

NJC captain, Mingyi (#9) said, “I think we started off a bit nervous as it’s the first game of the season. We only began to get into rhythm by the second half. Overall I think it was quite an okay game and definitely we could improve on it. We hope to keep up the intensity throughout the tournament, because this is what NJC basketball is about. I think our strongest opponent this round is AJC. However, I believe that if we can keep up this level of play and play with enough intensity, we have what it takes to beat them.”

Scoring by Quarter
NJC vs MI
1Q: 10–7
2Q: 13–14 (23–21)
3Q: 9–9 (32–30)
4Q: 21–6 (53–36)
Final score: 53–36

Top Scorers
NJC
Wang Jia Yuan (#13) – 11 points

MI
Moshu (#7) – 12 points (1 x 3 pointer)

National Junior College Roster
Alden Lim (#4), Richard Tan (#5), Tay Kang Ming (#6), Perry Chia (#7), Brian Lee (#8), Lim Mingyi (#9), Jia Shu Yi (#10), Jerald Lim (#11), Wang Yuhang (#12), Wang Jia Yuan (#13), Brendan Tan (#14), Jerome Tan (#15)

Millennia Institute Roster
Jasper (#4), Darrell (#5), Daryl (#6), Moshu (#7), Weiyang (#8), Marcus (#9), Zhengyu (#10), Collin (#11), Jiacheng (#12), Kaiyi (#13), Shunyong (#14), Hangkai (#15)

National A Division Boys Basketball Championship — Fixtures and Results

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