Senior Basketball season ends in success

Pupils throughout the Senior School took their basketball training and match performances to a higher level as a season of greatly improved league results culminated in two very important tournaments – the Shanghai International School Athletic Conference (SISAC) finals, held at BISS on 19^th January, and the ACAMIS basketball blue division finals, held in Qingdao on 26^th January. Both the Senior School boys’ and girls’ teams were in attendance at both events, drawing their players mostly from years 11 and 12, as well as a few members of years 9, 10 and 13. Both teams had worked extremely hard to get to this stage, achieving a remarkable turnaround of sporting fortunes in the space of a single season. For the girls, SISAC and ACAMIS proved to be the ideal opportunity to put in practice everything they had learned and experienced during their domination of the league, as they faced off against highly accomplished teams. It was easy to tell from the start that they had come with a game-winning attitude, as confident shots and layups quickly converted into solid score lines. This goes to show the power of psychology in sport, as the pressure of big matches can either make athletes fall apart or rise to the occasion and pull out their best possible performances. Happily, all of the girls achieved the latter! Perhaps the most tense moment of the ACAMIS tournament was the closing 20 seconds of the quarter finals, when YCIS led 14-13 and Stefania made a ‘nothing but net’ shot and won us the game in its final seconds. Dramatic moments like this really show that in basketball, every second counts. Every effort throughout the whole of the match can make the difference between victory or defeat. This is an attitude was demonstrated throughout both tournaments and led the girls to take second place in each case. This is a remarkable achievement and puts them in an excellent position to build on next season, where they will hopefully be able to secure a tournament win for themselves and the College. The boys shared individual flashes of brilliance, such as Matteo demonstrating his ability as an excellent team leader and point guard, and Jasper scoring 16 points in a game. This allowed them to secure themselves fourth place in both tournaments, which is an achievement they can be proud of and speaks of greater things to come next season. I am extremely proud of what our seniors have accomplished during the basketball season and I’m already looking forward to seeing them expand on what they’ve learned. Next year will be all about refining technical skills, improving the accuracy of every shot, even when under pressure. Skill wins points, but consistency and precision wins matches. The future of basketball at Wellington Congratulations to both Senior School teams on their results, but more importantly their admirable teamwork and dedication, which have led to them achieving such solid progress this season. Basketball is beginning a period of significant improvement and expansion at Wellington, and we urge anyone who is interested in giving it a try to come speak to us at the PE department office. We hope that by getting pupils involved in the sport earlier, the teams will continue to progress, as experienced players work together over several seasons, consolidating what they know and improving their abilities together. During the summer term there will be CISSA basketball for years 6-8, with signups taking place now. Please listen out for updates and talks during PE lessons.