S.Thomas’ College Mt. Lavinia and Lyceum International School Wattala went head to head in the third quarter final fixture of ThePapare Basketball Championship 2016, last evening at the Henry Pedris Basketball Complex. S. Thomas’ registered a comfortable win, outscoring Lyceum Wattala 74-52 as play drew to a close.
The STC skipper, Adrian Gunawardene, drew first blood as he rushed past the defense to convert a quick left-handed layup. Lyceum settled to a full court press early on, a defense they have opted for throughout the tournament. STC moved the ball around well, making use of long passes to penetrate the LIS defense and score through the lanes. Despite committing a number of fouls and making many unforced errors, Lyceum caught up to their opponents towards the end of the first quarter which STC led 22-20.
Lyceum continued the full court man-to-man press on their defense in the second quarter. STC were quite consistent in penetrating this defense, driving in consecutively to keep the scoreboard ticking. The Lyceum players handled the ball exceptionally; with point guard Nimesh Kulatunga calling the plays. LIS lacked the finish in their attempts at the basket and could not make the offensive rebounds count on a couple of occasions. At halftime the deficit between the two teams increased to 47-31.
Half Time: S.Thomas’ College Mt. Lavinia 47 – Lyceum International School Wattala 31
As play commenced in the second half after the break, Lyceum switched to a zone defense at the 3 point arc. Playing off screens on the offense, their attack ranged from three point attempts and floaters from inside the arc. However, they did not convert those attempts to points for more than seven minutes in the third period and frustration was evident in the body language of the team. The intense full court press in the first half seemed to have resulted in a decline in stamina levels of the LIS team in the second half of the game. On the other hand, S. Thomas’ rotated among their roster of players, bringing in fresh legs when necessary. Scoring off turnovers, the Thomians maintained a solid 8-0 run for a majority of the quarter. STC upped their lead to 57-38 at the end of the third period.
Lyceum managed to draw a number of fouls, driving from the baseline in the final quarter of the game. LIS pushed the pedal to the metal in the last 10 minutes, playing aggressively to keep the scoreboard ticking. Nimesh Kulatunga and Yashan shared three 3 pointers between each other for Lyceum. However, the closing in on the deficit seemed to be too big of a task at the end of the 40 minutes, as the Thomians cruised past comfortably to wrap up the game 74-52 to secure a spot against Maris Stella College, Negombo in the semi-final round of ThePapare U-19 Boys’ Championship 2016.
Full Time: S. Thomas’ College Mt. Lavinia 74 – Lyceum International School Wattala 52
The Lyceum International School Wattala head coach, Mr. Nerious, had this to say after the game; “S. Thomas’ College Mt. Lavinia were tough competitors. I’m content that our boys put in their best. We need to prepare well in advance for the next season.”
The Assistant Coach of the winning side, Mr Sriyantha commented on his team’s performance, “I look forward to the boys playing more aggressively in the semi-final round, as the completion will get even tougher at that stage.”
Top Scorers:
Kanishka Katipearachi 17 pts (STC)
Rashan 19 pts (LISW)
ThePapare.com Player of the Match – Kanishka Katipearachi (S. Thomas’ College)
