CH pips Serangoon Gardens for 2nd successive B title!

20 Apr 06 (Thu) – Toa Payoh Sports Hall

With the clock ticking away in the last two minutes of the fourth quarter, centre Khaw Yeong Wooi chose the best possible moment to shine. Grabbing a rebound, he dribbled up court, evading three defenders along the way to score his third consecutive basket for the team. The Catholic High basketball team then went on to record a thrilling 67-58 win over Serangoon Gardens Secondary School at the finals of the B Division Basketball Inter-school competition held at Toa Payoh Sports Hall on 20 April.

 

Said the 1.93m tall Malaysian student: “I wasn’t thinking of anything much except to help my team win. When I found the ball in my possession, I just attacked the basket and fortunately scored in all my attempts. I was really surprised to find how unmarked I was. Perhaps the other team was tiring towards the end.” He was later named the Most Valuable Player of the game, chalking up an impressive statistic of 15 points, 12 rebounds and 6 assists.

 

Catholic High had started the brighter of the two teams, leading at the end of the first quarter 19-9. Their shooting guard Shawn Lim was unstoppable, single-handedly downing four 3-point shots and scoring on a driving lay-up. He eventually top scored the game for both teams with 26 points.

 

A critical turning point came at the start of the second quarter when Catholic High’s power forward Yap Ching Poh went down with an ankle sprain. The team from Serangoon Gardens took full advantage to close the gap to 23-32 at the half and 40-43 by the end of the third quarter. His re-introduction into the game did not seem to help at first as the Serangoon Gardens team staged a furious comeback to lead midway through the fourth quarter 46-45 on a lay-up by their captain Gordon Ho.

The lead changed hands a few times before Catholic High’s point guard Chiam Hongyao scored a crucial 3-pointer to extend their lead to 58-54. Yeong Wooi then took over in the final stages to lead his team to successfully defend their B Division title. 

“This victory is particularly sweet as our boys worked very hard to prepare for the competition during the December school holidays,” remarked Mr Ian Chew, the teacher-in-charge of the school’s basketball team. “Both teams wanted to win badly, but our better composure and fitness were crucial factors resulting in our victory today.”

 

Added a visibly ecstatic principal Lee Hak Boon, “Credit must go to everyone involved: the teachers, coach and students who have put in so much effort. Our school spirit was also evident today among the supporters, who never stopped cheering for the team even though they were behind.”

 

Both teams had advanced to the final boasting unbeaten records. Catholic High had beaten Unity Secondary 78-65 and Serangoon Gardens edged out Anglican High 62-60 in their semi-final matches. Unity Secondary eventually finished third while Anglican High took fourth place.