The young BBAXN Basketball Organisation, established less than 8 months ago, proved that its leagues field some of the best players in Singapore. On Sunday evening (Nov 27th) the BBAXN All Stars played their first ever game against the impressive NBL Div. 1 Champions for the last two years: Home United. The Game was the kick-off of the 7-Eleven Singapore Basketball Challenge organized by the Basketball Association of Singapore.

Playing in front of a full house at the BAS courts, with very strong local support, the All Stars got off to a rocky start with Home United scoring the first 7 points. The All Stars big men however soon took charge of the situation by scoring all of the All Stars points (Adam 5 points, Marcello 6 and David 6). The All Stars also tightened their defense by restricting Home United to perimeter shots only. The first quarter score Home United 13 ? BBAXN All Stars 17.

In the second quarter Home United exploited the fact that the All Stars had not played together before by deploying a full court press which the All Stars found hard to break. This resulted in numerous turnovers which Home United expertly converted. Here the differences of the styles of plays also became very obvious: Home United largely limited their offense to outside shooting whereas the All Stars used their considerable size inside. Both sides defended their baskets fiercely resulting in a very physical game and the referees did a good in keeping tempers in check. After the second quarter Home United 30 ? BBAXN All Stars 29.

Things really heated up during the 3rd quarter as neither party gave an inch and every shot was contested. Home United continued their success with full court press whereas the All Stars were pounding the boards. Home United was unable to match the size and strength of the All Stars centers and forwards and they committed many fouls in their attempt to stop the big men. Adam Miller was particularly effective and virtually unstoppable when he got his hand on the ball. Edwin Jager showed the All Stars the way with some great defense: his block of a Home United fast break lay up was one of the most memorable moments of the game. Ted Cowan also played solid defense and was instrumental in keeping the All Stars in the game. Third quarter score: Home United 44 ? BBAXN All Stars 47.

The 4th quarter was a real nail biter. At the beginning of the quarter the All Stars increased their lead to 7 points but the tenacious defense of Home United and some great 3-point shooting by the local champions brought Home United within 1. Both teams relentlessly pursued the basket and the game became even more physical. The crowd went into frenzy and the temperatures came to a boiling point on the court. The All Stars even received a Technical Foul which led to Marcello fouling out (not after scoring 12 points including a crowd silencing slam) whereas Home United also had a player foul out in the last few minutes. JC however kept his cool and made a crucial play and free throw in the last minute. In the final 5 seconds of the game, the All Stars led by 2 with Home United in possession. In spite of tight defense Home United got off a final 3-point shot with 2 seconds to go?.. ?..he shot bounced of the rim and was caught by David. End of game. Home United 62 ? BBAXN All Stars 64.

The very tough win proves that within a very short time BBAXN has attracted some of the very best players in Singapore to its young leagues which currently boast 22 teams (18 men?s, 4 women?s) and a junior academy. A special thanks to coaches Mike and Shane for inspirational coaching and superb tactical plays. All Stars scorers: Adam Miller 17, Marcello Orberg 12, David Blackmon 11, Ted Cowan 9, Jace Neo 8, Edwin Jager 5, Chiung Huay Gan 2 The BBAXN All Stars will now prepare for the game against LJE Fastbreakers on Sunday December 4th at 1900. The Fastbreakers incidentally also feature a number of BBAXN players including the top scorer of the Saturday League Ramon Martin.

Author: David Blackmon