Varsity Basketball 2010: Men's 2nds

In a game that was earlier described as merely a formality to tire out St. John, several York players shone on the court, playing their first competitive game, and galvanised the crowd behind them through a fantastic final quarter.

Right from the tip-off York showed more determination to win the game than their rivals. In quick succession Will Green and Tom Marks built up York’s lead whilst St. John’s star player, their shooting guard, failed to hit three successive fast break layups. Green, who had previously stopped playing basketball, proved his abilities had not been diminished by his long leave of absence from the game. Marks brought a strong presence to York’s offence, attacking from the low post with purpose and aggression whilst John Tapas and Sam Craig also put in strong performances, grabbing rebounds and hitting fade-aways respectively. St. John’s shooting guard did find his form eventually and helped carry his team through to a deficit of two points by the end of the quarter but St. John looked like a team that hadn’t prepared for the men they were facing. The quarter finished 21 - 19.

The second quarter was a different story. St. John’s experience and wounded pride drove them for the entirety of the second quarter, allowing them to retake the lead quickly. Halfway through the quarter St. John were ten points ahead of York, who were yet to score and this was down to the inexperience of the York team. The team managed to make almost every mistake a new team does in their first game: air balls, charging fouls, failure to box-out, and amassing an impressive six travelling fouls. All of this led to St. John’s large lead in the second quarter and it seemed like York would succumb to the predicted defeat. This, however, was not the case. Marks reasserted himself in the game, scoring York’s first points, whilst Tapas netted his second three pointer along with a nice two, scoring half of York’s points in the quarter. The quarter finished 31-38 in St. John’s favour.

At the start of the second half York came out hard, playing with the same intensity as the first. Using an ingenious change in defence, orchestrated by Coach Ben Barrett, York caused serious problems for both of St. John’s forwards, their two strongest players. With the defence playing better York began to eat into St. John’s lead. Green sunk his second three of the game, Craig hit his second textbook fade-away, and David Beckmann grabbed 4 rebounds, all contributing heavily to York’s revitalised play. Despite this, there was only one man who captured the crowd. To cries of “make it rain” and “MVP” Tapas began his bombardment from downtown, netting two more three pointers, stealing the ball twice, and generally putting in an impressive individual effort to make sure the team’s determination was rewarded. St. John’s point guard kept the team in contention through his strong drives but only just, the quarter finished 46-48 in St. John’s favour.

The final quarter was one the York players will remember for a long time. York, with the momentum, the crowd, and the game within their grasp, kept the pressure up on St. John. Marks continued to play hard, scoring another two and grabbing three key rebounds, along with another two rebounds each for Beckmann, Green and Tapas. Tapas didn’t score this quarter but this was not due to a lack of form, instead a team-mate came back into the game to make his own impressive impact. Zili Gu, with only a two to his name, stole the ball twice and scored six points from within the arc. These six points, on the stat sheet, are what clinched the game for York but they were by no means the only factors that secured the victory. Almost the entire basketball club was present, along with many spectators, cheering the second team on their way to victory, whilst every York player on the court put everything they had into the final minutes. With 1:46 to go York was 54-51 in the lead, only to have St. John close the gap to only one point, and then endure a heart-in-mouth moment as St. John grabbed two offensive rebounds in succession, only to miss all their attempts to score. Only 0:16 seconds were left in the game and yet St. John’s managed to regain possession, only to lose it again in the dying seconds. As the final whistle blew the crowd went wild, but there was no-one as happy as the players themselves. Ecstatic with their success, York showed just how far they had improved in the last few months, and their relief with their first victory, one which meant a lot to these players, shone through all of them.

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