Round 4 – Year 7-8 Division
The Breakers took on the Spurs and, created lots of opportunities to score in transition. They jumped out to an early lead, and took the ball strongly to the basket, led by Jairus Magsaysay, Brodie Blennerhassett and Matt Catterall. The Spurs fought on valiantly, but over dribbled the ball. This led to a number of turnovers, where the speed to the Breakers gave them the advantage. The Spurs did have a number of scoring opportunities, but missed the shots which would have kept them in touch. In the end the Breakers ran out comfortable winners 42 (J. Magsaysay 14, J. Garcia 8, B. Blennerhassett 8, M. Catterall 6, S. Mutendera 4, S Soloveva 2) to the Spurs 9 (E. Weesner 4, D. Oweyopo 3, S. Wright 2).
Year 5-6 Division
The Jayhawks powerhouse took on the Thunder, and once they got their game rolling they never looked back, with strong games by Sam Badiashile, Victor Komaiya and the skilful Ify Okiwelu. For the Thunder, Jack van der Kooij played a great game at both ends of the court. In the end the Jayhawks had too many avenues to score and ran out winners with a score of 32 (V. Komaiya 13, S. Badishiale 11, I. Okiwelu 6, N. Wong 2) to the Thunder 6 (J. van der Kooij 6).
Round 5 – Year 7-8 Division
This was an epic game between two evenly matched teams – the Breakers and the Jammers.
The Jammers started strongly through the work of Elijah Musulin, but every time they threatened to break away, the Breakers fought back. The Jammers had a narrow lead for most of the first and second half. Some strong work from Isaac Musulin on the break, and continuing strength inside the paint from Elijah saw them keep the Breakers at bay. For the Breakers, Jairus Magsaysay kept them in the game, and he was ably supported by Shaun Mutendera. Both Isaac and Jairus picked up four fouls in the first half, and did well to play strongly until they were fouled out with minutes to go. The Jammers scored the last few baskets and won 38 (E. Musulin 22, I. Musulin 12, M. Terpstra 2, E. Bronkhorst 2) to the Breakers 29 (J. Magsaysay 21, S. Mutendera 6, A. Gowans 2), making it one all between the teams.
Year 5-6 Division
The game between the Raptors and the Jayhawks was a competitive one, with the Jayhawks have the edge in size and experience. In general play, the match was keenly fought out, but the Jayhawks found more ways to score, particularly through Victor Komaiya and Sam Badiashile. The Raptors fought hard and never gave up, to their credit. As the game wore on the size and strength of the Jayhawks began to tell. The Raptors did hit back with some nice baskets in the second half, getting the biggest cheers in the game. The final score was the Jayhawks 31 (V. Komaiya 13, S. Badishiale 8, N. Wong 4. I. Okiwelu 4, S. Bakulikura 2) defeated the Raptors 6 (J. Chapman 2, Y. Ghebru 2, R. Clarke 2). It was great to see the game played in such good spirits.
Stirling’s Basketball Tip
A bounce pass is a low percentage pass, as it takes too long to get to its target and is often intercepted. It should not be used unless you are quite close to your opponent or are passing underneath the arms of a taller opponent. A firm chest pass is a much better alternative.
