St Peter's at the Gates of Heaven
St Peter's stormed to an impressive victory in Basketball Cuppers over a short-handed Somerville/Hertford team in a bad tempered but exciting affair at Iffley.
The match threatened to turn nasty during the second half when SPC's Nikos Thomopoulos clashed with the Somerville/ Hertford Captain over some physical defending and questionable self-refereeing due to the lack of a neutral official at the game.
The tight marking was a reflection of both team's attempts to cut back on their opponents' attacking opportunities and saw the free throw line increasingly take hold in the second half after a free-flowing opening. The first half saw Somerville/Hertford battle well with a player short and the combined college side only faced a five-point deficit at the break, after leading for much of the first half.
Reinforcement arrived in the form of Joe Westby, but Somerville/Hertford were unable to prevent SPC from pressing home their advantage late on in the second half. Their better passing and movement showed through, before Somerville/Hertford tired following their first half efforts.
After a steady opening, Somerville/Hertford took an 11-6 lead with an excellent three-pointer. They extended their lead with baskets from Nick Wysham and Chris Sherwood, before the Captain converted on a breakaway opportunity with an excellent lay-up for two points creating a 22-16 advantage.
However, this seemed to wake up St. Peter's who ripped open their opponents defence in a 13-0 rush either side of halftime for a seven point lead. The highlight of the SPC onslaught was the shot that finished their scoring rally - a majestic three-pointer from way out by Antoine Artiganave.
Somerville/Hertford rallied briefly to square the game at 35-35 after Luke McConnell had fouled the Somerville captain in the key. Unfortunately the team's clashed over an alleged elbow incident by a Somerville/Hertford defender, but it was St. Peter's who capitalised as Thomopoulos helped St. Peter's establish a 40-36 advantage with only three minutes to go.
St. Peter's strategy soon changed to consolidation with the effect of limiting Somerville/Hertford to unlikely three point opportunities. Another three-pointer from Artiganave sealed the win for St. Peter's, before McConnell completed a nineteen-point haul after an excellent pass from team mate Chloupet.
SPC captain Andrew Prentice was delighted with his team's performance, commenting, "It was a good team display, the best of the season so far. I'm particularly pleased because we've been struggling for decent players and the Somerville/Hertford team are known to be very good."
10th Jun 2004