Yee Chun Leong
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN
THE FZ-Juramas - Easyway rivalry will add another chapter when they battle in the YOU.C1000 Cup Phase 1 final tomorrow night at 9pm at the BBA court in Batu Bersurat.
The core players of both sides have faced off on numerous occasions and know each other like the back of their hands.
They met in the finals of the 2016 and 2017 editions with Easyway claiming the former and Juramas exacting revenge the next year.
FZ-Juramas had a much easier time in the semi-finals on Monday dispatching TK Tea House 96-78 while Easyway had to battle for a 97-92 comeback win over YTE in overtime.
Easyway coach Ryan Yusof was glad that his team managed to pull through especially having to overturn a seven-point deficit in less than a minute to force overtime against the 2018 champions.
“Well I'm sure that game stands out as one of the best comeback matches that has been played at the BBA court,” said Ryan in an interview with BruSports News today.
“I think the players understand the gravity of the situation, everyone dug deep and found the composure to finish strong.
“I can't deny a few crucial shots by (Ahmad Ter)Mizi (Hj Noordeen), (Md) Zainul (Ashyraf Hj Hussin) and (Khoo Chin) Kai that uplifted the team's energy to get into OT,” he added.
“With that momentum, my players stepped up big time and we managed to secure the game.
“I’m so proud of the Easyway team playing tremendously well with resilience and composure at the highest level as displayed last night which I'm sure the fans enjoyed it as much as we did,” he continued.
Despite having met on numerous occasions, Ryan expects another tough outing against FZ-Juramas.
“We have much respect as they've shown every year they're a very competitive team,” said Ryan.
“This final we are going to do what we have done all throughout this whole tournament which is to respect our opponents but yet still bring our best and hopefully it will translate well on court.
“It's always a lot of factors into this type of setting especially a final match.
Realistically I think it comes down to a bit of luck and who has the drive and determination to want it more,” he added.
FZ-Juramas forward Benjamin Lim believes that it will be another good matchup.
“I don’t think there will be any element of surprise since we are so familiar with each other except both teams are more experienced compared to our last matchup,” said Benjamin.
“I don’t expect them to full court press us like what they did to YTE. We will also have to be wary of Kel Hung who might be a surprise contributor who just joined them the last game,” he added.
Benjamin also highlighted that everyone on the team will be crucial to help them finish at the winning end.
“Personally, there is no particular individual matchup which will decide the game. All five Fitness Zone-Juramas players on the court at any given time are the key battles,” explained Benjamin.
“We have high expectations of one another and competition for game time is fierce in our team. Basically, everyone has to earn their time with their performance on the court.
“Everyone on our team is crucial to the team success. In my opinion, whoever displays the better teamwork and coordination will have better odds of lifting the cup tomorrow,” he concluded.
