Following the Whitgift U18 ‘Allstars’ basketball team’s exciting quarter-final LISBA (London Independent School Basketball League) Cup win versus City of London School for Boys, in January, the team encountered their semi-final rivals on ‘home-turf’ on Thursday 4 February.

Having previously defeated Farringtons School 50:32 in the league, the team were perhaps lulled into a false sense of security, and did not make the intended impact in the first quarter. Whitgift basketball coach, Mr Clemens Krammer, recounted the action, “Fortunately, we had a good start into the second quarter and finally showed some high-quality basketball in the last quarter. It was a tough game, but a very good win in the end. They boys showed a lot of heart in the final minutes and deserved the thrilling 54:41 win.”

The LISBA Cup Final will take place on Thursday 17 March, and will be hosted at Whitgift. The ‘Allstars’ will face the winner of the other semi-final: Alleyn's School versus Dulwich College.

Jerry Amokwandoh, team captain, summed up what it means to be in the final for the first time, “It is a huge achievement, and especially meaningful since it is the last year at Whitgift for some members of the team. We have the chance to win it at home, on our court, in front of our fans. The team has trained very hard this year, and we hope that this is reflected in our performance against a very challenging side.”

Unfortunately, the U14 team lost for the first time this season, 45:49 to City of London School, in a very close game. Mr Krammer went on to say, “This gives us a chance to prepare for the LISBA finals in March and to realise that we have to work harder to win the league.”