The first two quarter final matches of the Inter-International School Basketball Tournament were concluded earlier this evening with both Lyceum Nugegoda and Wattala securing their spots in the semi-finals stage of the tournament.
Lyceum International School Wattala vs Royal Institute
Lyceum Wattala breezed through to victory with a final scoreline of 68 to 38 points playing against Royal Institute. Jerome was the highest scorer for Lyceum getting 13 points during the game while Kevin was the heavy scorer for Royal Institute securing 10 points for his team.
Lyceum secured an early lead in the game capitalizing on fast breaks and adding onto their score in 3s by taking shots from beyond the perimeter. Lyceum dominated the scoreboard in each quarter securing the rebounds which led to many second shot opportunities through which they consistently outscored their opponents. Royal Institute, on the other hand, had terrible luck with their shots, with a majority of them rolling off the edge of the rim especially during the final quarter where they only managed to score 02 points. Lyceum managed to maintain control throughout the quarters allowing them to secure victory and advance to the semi-finals.
Full-time: Lyceum Wattala- 68 Royal Institute- 38
Lyceum International School Nugegoda vs Gateway College Kandy
In an unexpected turn of events, Lyceum Nugegoda turned the tables on Gateway Kandy and secured the second spot in the semi-finals triumphing over their opponents 52-45. The highest scorer for Lyceum Nugegoda was Yasheen contributing 15 points to the Lyceum score while Shevan Jayaweera was the main offensive player for Gateway scoring 11 points.
Gateway College took an early lead going into the game ending the first quarter with a deficit of over 10 points. The Gateway players managed to dominate the first half of the game consistently finishing strong near the rim and securing a majority of the rebounds. Although towards the latter end of the first half Lyceum settled into the game and began to catch up tightening their defence. Gateway managed to maintain the lead up until the end of the third quarter thanks to a few shots from downtown. Although the tables were turned on Gateway during the final quarter as Lyceum outscored Gateway 19 points to 6 during the final 10 minutes. The Lyceum players relied heavily on long passes and fast breaks to turn the tables on Gateway as they began to score consecutively changing the tide of the game and securing their spot in the semi-finals of the tournament.
Full-time: Lyceum Nugegoda- 52 Gateway Kandy- 45
Speaking to the coach of the Lyceum Nugegoda team he had this to say about the match: “We were trailing for a majority of the match but at the end of the day thanks to the experience of the players and their synergy they managed to turn things around and emerge victorious.”
