Round 5 Vs Oakhill College - Saturday 24th November 2018
On Saturday our ISA teams played away against Oakhill College.
U13A Coming into this game, Saints knew it was going to be a tough one. Oakhill coming out with lots of pressure and Saints failing to handle it. Saints being down a considerable margin at half time. The second half began, and Saints finally kicked into gear, playing some quality basketball. Unfortunately, Saints left it too late and the margin was just too big. A tough game for the boys, going down 31-57.
U13B started the game very strong in defence with our full court press giving an early 10-point lead. The "smalls" played up to perfection and got several steals. The "bigs" controlled both boards and were just dominant throughout the all game. The 20-point lead by halftime was just a result of the dominant performance Saints showed. In the second half we managed the game and controlled the scoreboard (ending up with a 25-point lead). The focus was on offensive execution, namely the pick and roll situation, which worked well and gave us easy baskets. Everybody was committed and very focus on the game. Overall, another great performance by the Saints, this time playing away, which gives us a better idea of the potential of this group.
U13C Great win, makes it three on the trot and surely puts us in a top position in the table. The boys started slowly again this week, making it a tougher game than it needed to be early. At the half we went in 13-9. However, in the second half the boys picked up their attitude and played solid lock down defence only allowing 2 points in the second half. The boys didn’t press like we initially wanted, and to Pius’ credit they were good at breaking it down whilst attracting fouls. In the end it was good ball distribution and drives to the basket off solid screens allowed us to win the game. In total great second half, could and should have been by a lot more had we played to our potential. final score 27-11.
U14A came out pumped in the first minutes pushing out a 15-2 lead behind Archie Richards and Henry Makoni. Oakhill pull-out back to make it a close game, with Ollie Cummins and Marco Severino bringing good energy and hustle to stay in the game. However too many lapses down the stretch allowed Oakhill to make some tough shots and pull away with the win by 8 points.
U14B, Slow start for saints as the boys struggled to connect. Fantastic effort on the glass from Lachlan Porteous and Jack Webster saw the lead increase at the end of the first half. Terrific defence from Harry Lynch and Oscar Hugill as they put pressure on the guards. The boys ended up winning 25-9.
U15A’s the boys suffered the first loss of the season against a highly physical and well-structured Oakhill side. The first half was a struggle on both ends of the court. However, in the second half the boys provided a much better effort outscoring the opposition and locking in defensively. Stand out for the game was Lucas Dunne, his first start of the season providing great hustle plays and an overall defensive presence. final score 29-35.
U15B Saints jumped out to an early lead with some great shooting from Scott Walters, and multiple steals from Dylan Kagho and James Lyons, leading 29-4 at the half. Continuing to dominate inside Nathan Hale had another very strong game and led the boys to a 56-10 win.
U17A had a tough loss to Oakhill this weekend, losing 27-20. The boys made a great come back in the last 5 minutes of the game, taking a 12-point difference to just 5 points, but unfortunately it was too late. The boys were exhausted after a long week at school camp with no basketball all week and unfortunately it showed on the court. Hopefully we will get them next time!
U17B had a very close win 24-22 with some clutch free throws from Charlie Miles in the dying seconds. The Saints boys played some terrific defence all game, especially Max Wallker with his help defence and Riley Thoms had a great effort protecting the paint with 4 blocks and awesome rebounding, Flynn Cooray was also great today with some great rebounding. Seb Jones controlled the offence well with his great leadership that helped the boys be poised in crucial moments. Overall great performance and win by the boys.
The College First’s started well playing very strong team defence, communicating and moving well. Oakhill had no answer early Saints sprinting to a 22-6 quarter time lead. This was arguably the best quarter of the season. The second quarter was a battle Saints holding the halftime lead 38-25. Oakhill came storming back in the third quarter out hustling and beating Saints to the ball as the Firsts showed a lack of energy against the change of momentum. There were a lot of missed calls that disrupted the team’s concentration. Saints holding a narrow 49-47 lead at the last break. The Firsts showed a lot of character closing the match and playing through contact to come away with a good team win. 76-62. unfortunately, the heavy contact took its toll with Captain Nick Kimball breaking his hand. Clancy Bird 11 rebounds, Jack Reddy 11 rebounds and Zack Kimball and Nic Albertini 8 rebounds.
2nd V got off to a hot start and never looked back. Joel was quick to find his range and made the most of the space created by the saint’s forwards dominating under the basket. Saint Augustine's defence was able to limit Oakhill to only 3 points in the first half. The second half saw much the same as in the first as Saints were able to create many points off turnovers by pressuring the Oakhill ball handlers. Tex Fletcher gathered every imaginable rebound and allowed saints to limit Oakhill opportunities and provided saints with additional possessions on the offensive end. A strong team performance and a convincing win. final score 25-13. Saints win.
IPSHA
Year 5 faced a reinvigorated Sydney Grammar St Ives and came away losing by 28 to 27 in the last seconds. Grammar deserved to win as they played a tight game and defended well. There were some debatable calls from the referee which rattled the boys and clearly got into their heads. Coupled with poor passing and shooting led to a disappointing result. The boys displayed moments of the good team work we are all familiar with but couldn't build any momentum. Overall the boys have had a great season and each of the boys bring something unique to the team.
The Year 6 played their final IPSHA game of the season with an away fixture at Sydney Grammar’s - St Ives campus. Coming off their school graduation the night before, the players were in good spirits, however started slowing to be down by 8 points early with little intensity and breakdowns in transition defence. Niki Kania would trigger a mini turnaround by applying ball pressure which led to steals and the bench unit of Charlie Baker, Luke Murray and Kodie Janik would steady the ship with a 15-4 run to finish the half 3 points in front at the Half. In the second half, Saints would play better with Tyler Hartman’s no look assists and Rory Richards and Bailey Schoene filling the lanes for fast break layups. Lucas Elbag, despite being in foul trouble would hit a foul line rainbow jumper and a chase down block by Joe Walsh was worthy of a top 10 season highlight. Grammar would not let up, regaining the lead in a see saw contest with 5 minutes remaining. However, it was Saints second unit which again showed character and discipline in key moment to close the game out with another run. Final score Saints 39-32. I would like to thank the players including Mitchell Will and Josh Gow for their efforts and contribution to a fantastic year 6 IPSHA basketball season.