UEL men’s third team made a quick start on home soil at SportsDock, following their face off against UCL. UEL’s hasty start came after link play between Jahmar Pitterson and Kufre Inua, with Inua scoring the two points to get the match started.
UCL’s first point came from two free throws by Elon Glouberman after a foul by UEL, however after a few missed shots UCL went on a fast break, to find the basket minutes later by Glouberman, levelling the score.
UEL continued to find the net in this first quarter picking up five points following a three-pointer by Isaac David and a two-pointer by Ose Eromobor.
With points from Glouberman and Liu Xinhan, UCL managed to close the gap as the two teams sat level with two minutes to go in this first quarter. UCL extended the gap and took the lead for the first time in this match, following two free throws by Glouberman.
Despite UEL’s heavy defence of UCL’s half, UCL’s Lee Chun Ho, managed another two-pointer at the end of the 1st quarter, stretching the lead to four-points.
UEL Resilience
UEL continued to chase the lead in this game following a steal and layup by Inua after UCL lost possession and were quick to start off the second quarter with an opening two-pointer, however UCL snapped back with a layup from Antoine Bacques.
Visiting side UCL were careless with their fouls in this quarter with Chun Ho fouling Isaac David of UEL, which the home side turned over to produce more points solidifying the gap. However David closed the first half with a three-pointer to stretch the score to a nine-point lead.
Hard Fought Third
Coming back in from halftime, the score remained even between both teams, however, UCL came out to firing at UEL’s basket, as the first point of the third quarter came from Bacques following UEL’s first foul of the quarter.
UEL were quick to snatch up points in this quarter following an assist from David resulting in Pitterson collecting two points, extending the score to a 10-point gap. However, UCL hit back after a fast break by Glouberman after UEL lost possession, the challengers looked to charge again with a lay-up by Jean-Christophe Calixte.
UCL made moves again following Yeap Joo Yun and Lee Chun Ho withstanding UEL’s defence, assisting Ho in another two points for the visiting side to level the score, only for UEL to squeeze into the lead with a two-pointer leaving it 39-37 in the third quarter.
Win Secured
Inua kicked off the final quarter with a two-pointer, stretching the home side’s lead once again. Following a quiet patch of no point scoring for either side, Inua of UEL collected another two-pointer for UEL.
Visitors UCL bagged five more points following Glouberman’s two-pointer and three-pointer to chase down UEL’s lead. However, UCL’s back to back points, didn’t last long as UEL reacted minutes later with a three-pointer by Inua.
Following lay ups by Bacques and Andrei Andronic for UCL, the away side picked up a string of points only for UEL to counteract with two points after Pitterson’s free throw. Despite a heavier UEL defence, UCL managed to grab a final two-pointer – sadly not enough to eradicate UEL’s strong offence and defence today, the game finishing 52-49.
UEL men’s third team fought hard to win the match with a four-point advantage over UCL’s second team. A win for fourth placed UEL against Queen Mary University in their final game of the season, puts them momentarily in third place. UCL face bottom of the league Medway 1st team in their next game.