The first semi-final of the Women`s A Division was played between the Navy BC and the Contenders. Every hoop that was missed by the Contenders gave an additional opportunity for Navy to etch the defensive rebounds and have more chances at the basket. At full time Navy BC outran the Contenders with a thirty four point lead to enter the finals.
In the maiden quarter though the Contender s gave in a strong defense, it did not stop the Navy team from gaining the lead. Even though Contenders gave in a strong defense the opponents were well equipped with a counter-attacking offense strategy. Navy BC having the services of the two experienced campaigners Solange Gunawiyaya and Pramila Fernando knew exactly on how to adopt to the situation. (Navy – 14 vs Contenders – 10)
Shalika Gomez skipper of Contenders succeeded swished the nets as the second quarter commenced. Oshadi Karunaratne who stole the ball a couple of times off the sailors upped the scorecards as Umanga De Zoysa made no mistake in swishing the nets as she was dished out with the long pass after the steal. Premila Fernando shot from outside the arc as she squared the game and said game on. Handling pressure was not one of the strong suits of Contenders. As the pressure piled on they lost momentum and started dishing out passes all over which were eventually stolen by the Sailors. Navy BC managed to covert almost all the steals into points at the end which helped them to lead the game at half time.
Halftime – Navy BC – 30 Contenders – 19
Contenders still did have a chance of surviving if they had opted to stick with the basics. Navy BC intersected every of the Contenders and converted them to points at the other end. Even though Shalika Gomez attempted several layups she was well bought down by the double team defense. Contenders lacked the competency in theories of the textbook on ball handling defending the adversaries. Abeysinghe and Solange Gunawijeya plaued valuable minutes in the third quarter as they led the game ahead by fifteen points.
Contenders did not recover from their lack of coordination between players. As they lacked stamina, injuries came into play and it was indeed a huge blow for the Contenders. Navy BC held sway during the final quarter and walked away triumphantly.
Fulltime – Navy BC – 68 Contenders – 34
ThePapare.com player of the match – Solange Gunawijeya (Navy BC)
