30 January 2023
Northwood tackled Saint Charles College in Durban on Saturday in an eagerly awaited showdown between two of South Africa’s best basketball teams. It was hot, blustery, and the atmosphere around the court was electric.
The home team started off the contest in feisty fashion, while Saints’ shooting was cold, which resulted in Northwood, very quickly, launching into a 6-0 lead.
Saint Charles, though, entered the clash on a streak of 26 matches unbeaten, and they were not about to be phased by a less-than-ideal start. Applying stifling pressure high up the court, Saints were able to disrupt Northwood’s early rhythm and managed to force a number of turnovers to claw their way into the game.
Northwood, though, had an unflappable, highly skilled presence at the back in the form of point guard Callum Magurno (see photo top of article). With his silky-smooth ball-handling and sharp athleticism, he was an ideal counter to Saints’ aggressive defence. Not many are able to withstand the Pietermaritzburg school’s relentless pressure, but Magurno could and did.
Saints’ shooting issues
Still, Saint Charles managed to turn over possession on a good number of occasions. The problem for the visitors, however, was that their shooting continued to let them down. The conditions were tricky and countless times the ball was mere centimetres off target, striking the rim before failing to drop. Yet Northwood, maybe because they were better attuned to playing in such conditions, managed to do a better job of turning their possession into points.
As half-time neared, Saints, at last, passed Northwood for a very narrow 22-19 lead at the break. There was nothing in it and the home side’s scrappy attitude and full-blooded defence, as much as the wind, was causing Saint Charles problems.
At the start of the second half, Saints put up three three-point attempts in quick succession. They hit with the first, but Northwood, showing they were not about to go away, immediately sank a three of their own.
A misstep?
Saint Charles, as has been their way, had changed up their defence to start the second half, settling back into a deep zone. In retrospect, this was probably a misstep. They had been successful with their high press, but the easier path to the basket now took some pressure off of Northwood.
Still, the teams were going at it fiercely, with neither giving an inch. Soon, they were level at 26-26.
Then, Northwood managed to sink a number of shots to pull clear of Saints. At the same time, Saint Charles’ shooting went ice cold. They couldn’t buy a basket. They had plenty of opportunities for points, but there were no easy baskets to be had because of the hosts’ terrier-like defence. Unusually, on the other end, Northwood were able to score from some easy layups.
A decisive run
A 14-0 run, during which Lusanda Hlongwane made some fantastic splash plays, gave the home side a useful 40-26 lead, which was not going to be easy for Saints to make up in the trying conditions; it was not a high-scoring game.
Saint Charles hadn’t put together their impressive winning run, and victories in the Stayers’ Tournament and Saint John’s College Tournament, without knowing how to withstand tough challenges, but, on this occasion, Northwood had the answers. Crucially, Adam Parker made a couple of big plays for the home side, draining to two three-pointers in quick succession, to keep Saints at bay.
Visitors frustrated
Saint Charles reverted to a high press, but Magurno, when in possession, controlled the ball expertly for Northwood to keep the visitors frustrated and at bay.
As time wound down, it became clear that this was to be Northwood’s day. When the final whistle sounded, they had run out 48-42 victors.
SCORES
1st: Northwood 48-42 Saint Charles
2nd: Northwood 21-20 Saint Charles
3rd: Northwood 22-23 Saint Charles
4th: Northwood 34-16 Saint Charles
5th: Northwood 46-6 Saint Charles
16A: Northwood 32-22 Saint Charles
16B: Northwood 32-29 Saint Charles
16C: Northwood 16-33 Saint Charles
16D: Northwood 44-8 Saint Charles
15A: Northwood 63-14 Saint Charles
15B: Northwood 47-24 Saint Charles
15C: Northwood 15-25 Saint Charles
15D: Northwood 30-4 Saint Charles
14A: Northwood 15-26 Saint Charles
14B: Northwood 22-9 Saint Charles
14C: Northwood 24-6 Saint Charles
14D: Northwood 41-0 Saint Charles
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