With a view to creating a healthy environment for students to engage in sports and improving well-being, the school committee collaborates with the club Hanoi – Ams Basketball Team annually to organize a traditional basketball tournament called Hanoi – Amsterdam Basketball Cup – ABC. The tournament has always accomplished its mission to inspire generations of students and instill a passion for basketball and other sports in general. It is also a crucial factor in selecting the brightest talents for Hanoi – Amsterdam basketball team which will participate in other big tournaments for students later in the school year.

The opening ceremony of ABC’16

Mrs. Duong Tu Anh, Vice Principle of the school at the ceremony

With tremendous help and support received from the school committee and generations of students, the tournament has increasingly developed in scale and quality. In this 7^th season, a total of 12 teams are in contention for the championship, with the number of players amounting to 144. This is considered the biggest number in the history of the tournament – a firm testimony to its prestige, quality and scale that distinguish it from other tournaments in Hanoi. With previous remarkable successes as well as symbolic records made, Hanoi – Amsterdam Basketball Cup 2016 is expected to be the most successful basketball tournament in Vietnam for teenagers, setting an example for other physical education activities in other high schools in Hanoi.

A lot of Amsers gathered to attend the opening ceremony on October 13

No sooner had the ceremony finished than the opening match of the season between 99+ and Reaper began in rousing cheers and great expectations of hundreds of spectators present.

99+ and Reaper: Down to the wire right at the beginning

The referee blows his whistle to kick off the first match

The opening match of the season is that between the reigning champion 99+ and its opponent Reaper. Having many of its players being members of the school’s basketball team in the year 2015 – 2016 such as Tran Duc (Computer Science 1417) and Tuan Hung (Physics 1 1518), as well as being champion of ABC two times in a row, 99+ is regarded as the best candidate for the championship of ABC’16. On the other side of the court is Reaper, who do not have such strong members as their opponent but has always made their mark with a steady and stable manner. With such comparisons, almost all spectators at the match predicted a straightforward victory for 99+.

But what actually happened at the match proved the opposite. With effective and proper strategy, Reaper has caused countless difficulties to 99+ throughtout the match. The outstanding members of 99+ like Tuan Hung and Tran Duc were always in possesion of the ball, attacking the paint and dominate the Reapers on both ends of the floor. But in a day when Reaper’s defense was in full swing, 99+ players repeatedly missed golden opportunities to finish. The first quarter ended with a close score of 11-2 at the advantage of 99+, foretelling exciting rounds to come.

Outplaying Reaper most of the time but 99+ did not prove itself far superior to its opponent

Moving on to the next quarter, Reaper actively mounted attacks and outplayed 99+. Everytime a player of 99+ had the ball, there was always 2 to 3 Reapers surrounding him to steal it. Captain of Reaper Truong Thanh Thai (Physics 2 1417) was probably the best player of round 2 with both skillful attacks and defense, bringing crucial points to help Reaper narrow the score down to 13-9.

The third round was also an outstanding game of Reaper as their play reached its climax with many great shots and harmonious teamwork. Ending the round with the score of 21-21, Reaper astonished all of the spectators present with their amazing strength, which greatly boosted their confidence to move to the final quarter.

Reaper regained the match in their favour

Not until the final round were the spectators able to enjoy the real iconic image of current champion 99+. They did more 3-pointers and blocked those of their opponents. 99+’s great efforts seemed to undermine Reaper’s determination, they score 11 points while Reaper only got 7- A fair finish of an excellent, well-played match.

The match ended with a narrow victory, 32-28 to 99+, helping the team rank 1^st on the table for the time being. However, 99+ still has a lot to do to secure their championship after their performance against Reaper. For Reaper, once again they made a deep impression on the fans with their beautiful, skilled yet effective basketball play. They had proved to be a tough challenge to their future rivals as a strong contender for ABC’16’s championship.

Results of matches in the first day of the competition:

99+ - Reaper: 32-28

1511-Gắt Basketball Team: 26-16

The schedule of Hanoi – Amsterdam’s traditional basketbsll tournament:

The road to championship is still very long, and all of our teams have a lot more to do if they want to secure their place in the top of the competition. The prestigious trophy is for the best and brightest one only. On behalf of the Editorial Department of Hanoi – Amsterdam, I would like to send my most sincere wishes to all 12 teams and hope they will bring about the most gripping and enthusiastic of battles for the audience. May the new season of ABC gain huge success!

Reporter: Tra My – Literature 16-19

Translator: Luu Minh Dung – English 1 16-19

Photos: Hanoi-Amsterdam Basketball Team