First Slingers match

Thanks to Nic who scored us a pair of corporate box tickets, Lyn (my boo) and I popped over to the Indoor Stadium yesterday to catch a basketball match – Singapore Slingers vs Brisbane Bullets. I think this is perhaps the first basketball match where the both of us felt really pampered. Spectators in the corporate boxes are not only treated to fantastic seats allowing us wonderful courtside entertainment, but a buffet at the Captains’ Club upstairs.

And if that doesn’t make you envious enough, what about free flow of refreshments consisting of soft drinks, chips, brownies, cup cakes, pastries..and oh…beer and red wine during the game? Ooooooh baby!! Many thanks to Precious aka Hilliary (Nic’s boo) for ensuring that we were well taken care of considering that Nic was stuck in Taiwan…wonderful hospitality. To top it off, I finally had the opportunity to finally meet Sheylara, her Goonfather, Sabrina and generally made friends with the rest of the spectators.

Yeah…good seats

Although I have attended the Australian National Basketball League matches before, I believe this is the first Slingers game for me. I have seen the Perth Wildcats, Sydney Kings and Melbourne Tigers in action, but not the home team…(yeah I know…shameful). To tell you the truth, I wasn’t really hopeful that the Slingers would take the game home yesterday. I mean the stats were pretty obvious. The Brisbane Bullets were not only last year’s champions, but were on a winning run for the last four games. The Singapore Slingers on the other hand, were on a six-game losing streak. I mean what are the odds yah?

But how wrong was I. After the tip off, the Slingers fought bravely to keep the scores level or ahead denying the Bullets to some good plays. Although the Slingers’ plays seem somewhat sluggish during the first half, they were ahead by about 10 or so points by half time. They were able to keep their lead throughout the second half with some great scoring performance and showtime. Most importantly, they took advantage of their open shots and free throws, adding to the lead.

However, the Bullets are not a team you would want to let your guard down at any time of the game. They have always seem to spread out pretty well, allowing them to reply almost immediately after a Slinger scores. They always have a man in the face of a Slinger, making it really difficult to carry out anything in their playbook. As physical as the game was, both teams showed a great level of sportsmanship.

Taking advantage of the great view, I whipped out my ‘ol D70 and Sigma 70-200 F/2.8 in a bid to capture some action, only to be disappointed by a ton of back focus (always a problem with the D70)…uugghh!! A sign to buy another camera…hmmm. Anyhoo, you can check out the rest of the photos in my Flickr album and read the post game review here.

Related posts:

1. Slingers one win away from ABL Finals
2. Singapore Slingers and fans got owned at home
3. 36ers floored Slingers
4. Slingers slash Dragons
5. I love sports photography – Slingers vs Razorback