Nolington Year 9 played their borough Basketball finals against a strong Leytonstone side on Tuesday 3rd March.

This was the third time the two teams had faced each other this year. In the first game, Norlington lost by 19 points, and in the second game the margin was just 5 points, so it was clear this was going to be another tough match.

The first quarter started very tight, with both teams playing strong defence. It was a low-scoring quarter as each team tried to understand how the other would play. Leytonstone finished the first quarter ahead 10–4, with both sides defending well and limiting scoring opportunities.

In the second quarter, the game opened up a little more. Unfortunately, Norlington had a difficult spell and were only able to add two more points, while Leytonstone extended their lead to 24–8 going into half time.

The third quarter was Norlington’s strongest period of the game. The boys showed great determination and managed to reduce the deficit to a 9-point game, with momentum starting to swing slightly in Norlington’s favour.

However, Leytonstone had a little bit too much in the final quarter and eventually won the game 57–30. They had one outstanding player who scored over 40 points, which made the game particularly difficult to contain defensively.

Despite the result, the boys performed very well. More than half of the team were fasting, which made the effort and intensity they showed even more impressive. Reaching the final and finishing second in the borough with silver medals is still a great achievement and something the boys should be proud of.

Player of the Match: Ahmed Wasim
Top Scorer: Leonard Switala