December 14, 2017

Injury news was the talk of the common room before the senior basketball House event, as big game players Patt, Alex and James were ruled out. This added further intrigue to an already too tough to call set of games.

The first game saw Surus take on a deflated Sabre side smarting from the loss of Patt. However, Bhavesh set to work immediately and settled the nerves of the Sabre fans by putting on an efficient display. Surus battled hard with Gang in particular showing of his natural flair and was unlucky from the free throw line. With just two minutes remaining Ella and Caitlin called for the impact sub Mr Cantrill and his energy and passion provided a boost. Despite the renewed Surus efforts Utkarsh’s Sabre were able to repel the charging Surus and secured a solid 6-0 victory displaying excellent communication and team work.

The next game was too close to call according to Patt, and he was proven correct. Panthera started strongly and had a 4-0 half-time lead. There was passion and the spirit of the lion and lioness were definitely present. However, the second half saw Ursus build momentum and Aaron scored with just 30 seconds remaining to tie the game. It was finally decided on a golden basket which was converted by Aaron once again after 3 minutes of overtime. It was a tense affair with both Ms O’Higgins and Mr Blakemore taking to the court to lead by example and Mr Pollock making an appearance but even his presence couldn’t stop the Ursus tide.

The third/fourth play-off was closely contested between Panthera and Surus. After a dominant start Panthera’s arrogance at the free throw line almost proved fatal. Surus, with a Craig inspired 3 pointer, and a House Captain’s performance from Ella brought it back to 4-4 with just one minute remaining. However, the missing man from Tuesday, Alex, combined well with Pimada to convert and restore Panthera’s lead. Both sides showed excellent team spirit and provided a nail biting finish.

The most anticipated game to conclude this year’s house basketball definitely lived up to everyone’s expectations. The first half was closely competed between both Houses with Ursus having no answers to Patt’s long pass tactic, which proved a constant threat to the strong Ursus side. This was addressed in the second half and by the wily and experienced Mr Blakemore, allowing Ursus to shut down the long passes as well as score the crucial baskets to take the lead. This would be maintained by a solid Ursus defence marshalled by Natalie and Sydney. Ending in an Ursus victory by a close margin of 6-2.

The students will be certainly looking forward to the next year’s competition, some will be seeking for revenge whereas some for maintaining their pure dominance! If you would like to see more photos, watch the post-match interviews for the opening game and see some of the statistics please visit the House Events Basketball page by clicking on the following link:

https://bkkprep.fireflycloud.asia/house-information-2/ events/house-basketball

Neil Groves – Head of House (ngroves@bkkprep.ac.th)

Utkarsh Gupta – Student Head of Sabre House