Year 10 Jets are District Cup Winners!
Year 10 Basketball District Cup Final – 2nd February 2024, Surrey Sports Park.
Wavell v Yateley
The Year 10 boys came into this game with an unbeaten run in both League and Cup competitions this season including a win over the opponents in the final, Yateley. When the two sides previously met it was a close and hard-fought game where Wavell took the win by only 4 points.
This match followed a similar storyline....
They started the first quarter with reams of confidence and dominated throughout. Rufus scored 3 free-throws in this quarter as Yateley fouled frequently in an effort to stop our relentless attacks into the key.
The first quarter ended 10-0 to Wavell
As we went into the second quarter feeling calm and confident, the boys built on their lead by adding more baskets to the scoreboard. Despite the brilliant attacking efforts, the boys were incredible and disciplined in their defence. They frustrated the Yateley team who continued to add to their fouls tally.
Quarter 2 ended 24-6 to Wavell
Quarter 3, however, saw Yateley come back into the game with avengeance. They scored quickly, within the first 3 minutes of the quarter, putting them within 10 points of us for the first time in the game. Two timeouts were called to organise our thoughts and tactics in order to try to slow down Yateley’s momentum. The boys spent the majority of the quarter defending their lead and trying to take back control of the game.
Quarter 3 ended 28-26 to Wavell
Consequently the pressure going into the 4th quarter was high. Nerves were settled as Rufus and Mehmet put 4 points on the board early on, meaning we were 6 points ahead of Yateley. There were nervous moments throughout the quarter with loose passes and lazy fouls creeping in from the Wavell boys as they began to show real signs of fatigue. Yateley’s foul count caught up with them however, as 2 of their players were subbed off after reaching their maximum number of fouls for the game. With 1 minute to go, Yateley scored a 3 pointer which put them within just one basket of us. Our boys played smart and slow to run the clock down but with 15 seconds to go a loose pass gave Yateley possession! We pressed hard in defence and denied Yateley the opportunity to attempt a shot - we could not have been more elated when that buzzer sounded!
Final score was 42 - 39
The boys showed excellent sportsmanship by offering to shake hands with all Yateley players before celebrating their win. Captain Beau lifted the trophy and this now sits proudly in our Trophy cabinet at school.
It was a performance to be proud of and an occasion to remember for a very long time!
