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Photos: Jack Western
York’s Men’s 1sts put on a stellar performance in their 55-50 victory over Newcastle’s 2nds in what was an undeniably intense encounter.
The first quarter was a remarkably close one, with both teams scoring and turning over the ball in equal measure. However, it was clear that York had an advantage over Newcastle when it came to speed and defence: Jason Chan and Nikos Barbatsalos set the pace with their tremendous teamwork and even greater speed.
The ball might have been going back and forth, but when Chan got ahold of it, Newcastle knew they wouldn’t be able to keep up. Despite a number of unfortunate passes and inconsistent rebounding, it was that speed and that pressure that kept York in the game. They ended the quarter trailing 14-15, knowing full well what their strengths were.
Not surprisingly, York kicked it up a notch, or ten, right at the start of the second quarter. Their speed and recovery were impeccable for the first few minutes. Newcastle barely even touched the ball as they lost control of both sides of the court. York’s defence was impervious to anything the offence tried, forcing Newcastle to take impossible shots from the perimeter.
This was so frustrating for Newcastle that they resorted to a flagrant foul, giving York two free throws and possession of the ball. In fact, this might have been the most impressive display of skill I have seen from the York Men’s 1sts. It was thoroughly impressive.
Unfortunately, what started as a 12-0 run for York at the start of the second came to a grinding halt a few minutes in and they lost their momentum. Newcastle started making shots again, often wide open uncontested ones, and after they sunk a clean 3-pointer, the balance of power had irreparably shifted to the away team. But in the end, York’s early burst of energy kept them four points ahead, 28-24, at halftime.
Right before the third quarter started, a very conspicuous Kallum Taylor, adorned in his signature scarf and jacket, tried to learn to shoot free throws. Meanwhile, York were working on figuring out just what went right and wrong in the first half. In many ways, the rest of the game followed the pattern the second quarter had established.
The third quarter had a much slower start. York would travel; Newcastle would block a shot; York would get a fast break; Newcastle would stop them with a stronger full-court press. Most of York’s shots at this point came from free throws, and most of Newcastle’s points came from easy jump shots.
That’s when Andreas Boedt became the catalyst for yet another burst of energy. York scored, rebounded the ball, and gave it to a wide open Boedt who put up a beautiful behind the back layup. The crowd loved it. Chan entered the game at this point and showed everyone why he was the best player on the court. Newcastle’s defence was set up tightly around the paint, forcing York back behind the 3-point line. Chan nonchalantly took five steps back from the line and put up a shot from the middle of nowhere. It was a perfect shot. It wasn’t quite Kobe Bryant with a classic fadeaway jump shot from 25 feet away, but it was close.
The quarter ended with a 44-36 lead for York, giving them a healthy lead going into the last ten minutes of the game.
However, those ten minutes belonged to Newcastle. They started off brutally, blocking shot after shot, setting up a full court press that forced York to lob the ball in the general direction of the basket with very little thought. They had a 6-0 run, getting dangerously close to York’s diminishing lead, until Boedt blocked one of Newcastle’s shots with such intensity that it must have snapped his team back into gear.
Chan and Barbatsalos were back in action, compensating for the previous few frustrating minutes. But despite putting a few clean shots, they still couldn’t match Newcastle’s full-court press. The bench was going crazy. Shouts of “Box out!” and “Press! Press!” will probably be haunting my dreams for the next week: it was an incessant cry for better defence, which York simply did not have. They relied almost entirely on speed and didn’t slow down enough to put a stop to Newcastle.
With only a minute to go, York’s Chris Taylor hurt (and possibly broke) his ankle. But even through the pain, he yelled at his teammates to finish the game, channeling any number of classic war films with the cry, “Forget about me! The main thing is to win!” At this point, the game was so close it could have gone either way. Newcastle sunk a disheartening 3-pointer, and then another jump shot.
Responding to Taylor’s encouragement from the bench, Boedt, with 20 seconds to go, put up a shot that left the ball spinning around the rim at least three times before tumbling in. Had this been Space Jam, it would have been in slow motion, dragged out for at least two minutes. Newcastle tried to get one last shot up after that but Boedt, with his characteristic block, slammed the ball into oblivion to end the game.
As Taylor yelled, “That’s how we play!” from the sidelines, York finished the game 55-50. It was close, but that’s precisely what makes basketball such an entertaining sport.