In the Men’s Super League Team Flexachem beat Irish Guide Dogs Ballincollig 94-88.
The game got off to a slow start. It was the 2nd minute before we got the first score, with the home side having the better of the opening quarter. Good scoring by Eche Okeke,Clay Ladine and Beni Fungala saw Killorglin lead by 26 to 21 by quarters end.
Jordan Blount had to sit out the 2nd quarter due to 3 fouls in the 1st. Hhowever 3 pointers from Fungala and Ladine along with inside scores from Okeke and Nathaniel Powell kept the scoreboard ticking over and by half time had extended their lead to 12 on a scoreline of 53 to 41.
The 3rd quarter saw Flexachem have a quiet first 5 minutes but good defending kept the Ballincollig threat in check. Good scores in the second 5 minutes by Okeke and Fungala saw the Launesiders ahead by 17 heading in to the final quarter at 73 to 56.
Ballincollig mounted a comeback early in the 4th with their American Jake Woulfe to the fore. 3 minutes in and the lead was cut to 8 on a score of 77 to 69. But with 5 minutes to go Jake Woufle was out of the game after picking up his second technical foul,soon to be followed by Jordan Blount who picked up his 5th foul. Flexachem's team Captain Liam Croke got a massive 3 pointer to push the lead out to 9 with 3 minutes left at 89 to 80. The Cork side hit back with scores from Adrian o Sullivan and Sean McManus and with 20 seconds to go had the lead cut to 3 at 91 to 88. Eche Okeke was then fouled and went to the free throw line; he converted the first throw and missed the second, but Nathaniel Powell was in quickly for the rebound and scored a two. This saw out the win for the home team on a final score of 94 to 88.
Team Flexachem are in the Capital next Saturday Evening for an away encounter with Bright St. Vincents,tip off for that game is 7.00.
Ger Nolan reports
Garvey's Tralee Warriors will rarely win a Super League as easily as their 91-54 dismissal of Maree at the Kingfisher Arena at NUIG on Saturday night. In doing so, they now sit third on the table, three wins behind leaders UCC Demons with a game in hand and two wins behind second placed Killester. The Warriors simply coasted to victory against the side that looked nothing more than a shadow of its former self. Maree had won both Super League home and away fixtures between the sides in the last two seasons but Saturday night saw them trail the Warriors at the end of all four quarters before ultimately succumbing to a 37 point defeat in the end.
The Warriors started without the services of captain Eoin Quigley but quickly set about building an early lead with Mark Stephens with a hat trick, Daniel Jokubaitis with a double and Rap Buivdas with a major score putting them 13-4 up. Maree stalwart Eoghan Rockall knocked down a three to cut the gap but a basket each from Brandon Mahan and Buivydas either side of Jokubaitis with a typical effort from distance had the Warriors 22-9 up at quarter time.
The Warriors continued to dictate the terms of the game early in the second with a major from Mahan and efforts from Greg Adon, Stephens and Cian Sullivan and despite three pointers from Joshua McGettigan and John Burke for Maree, the Warriors led 31-17 midway through the quarter. A volley of scores then put clear water between the sides with players queuing up to get to the Maree board and Jokubaitis, Mahan, Stephens, Josh Osyanrhion and Ryan Leonard all added to give the Warriors a 45-21 advantage at the long break.
Brandon Mahan fired another warning shot early in the third landing his second three but Maree to their credit replied with a quick run to cut the big lead in half. Zvonimir Cutuk, McGettigan and Miles Brown were all in range and when Rockall launched his second three of the game the gap was down to 50-34. However that was as good as it got for the hosts as the Warriors scored at their ease with Adon, Mahan, Jokubaitis from either side of the arc and Leonard following his lead from distance the game was all over bar the shouting with the visitors 67-37 up at three quarter time.
Maree are a proud side and despite the very obvious gulf in class in the game, sparked up to shoot a dozen points early in the fourth to add some respect to their score. McGettigan with six and threes from Cutuk and Daniel Oyeleye were countered by a double from Sullivan and a classy slalom to the board from Stephens. The Warriors saw out the win by adding scores as they pleased with Stephens and Zigi Kaletka on the mark and Osayanrhion and Mahan both firing in from inside and out, the contest tailed off to its inevitable conclusion with the players shaking hands before the final buzzer sounded.
The Warriors are well aware that much bigger and stiffer tests await in the final rounds of games as the playoffs come into sharp focus with just over a month left in the regular season. For Maree, it now looks as good as certain they will be playing National League Division One basketball next season.
Scorers:
Maree: Joshua McGettigan 16, Zvonimir Cutuk 14, Miles Brown 10
Garvey's Tralee Warriors: Mark Stephens 22, Brandon Mahan 17, Daniel Jokubaitis 16
Next up for the Warriors is Round 20 of the Basketball Ireland Mens Super League next Saturday 15th February, when they take on EJ Sligo All Stars at the Mícheál Ó Muircheartaigh Sports Hall at the Kerry Sports Academy in Tralee with tip off at 5.30pm.
Alan Cantwell reports
In the Men’s National League Killarney Cougars lost 83-109 to Tolka Rovers. Clodagh Donnelly reports
Scotts Lakers won 65-60 away to Team NorthWest. Enda Walsh reports
Garvey's Tralee Warriors extended their winning run in the Development League to five wins from five after they overcame a resilient Maree side at Kingfisher Arena at NUIG. The Warriors led throughout but Maree stayed within striking distance and the Tralee side were made to play all the way to the final buzzer.
The Warriors got off to their customary fast start and built a considerable first quarter lead after James Fernane opened the scoring from beyond the arc. Dan Bowler with a double and three scores from Josh Osayanrhion saw the visitors 17-7 up midway through the quarter. Maree replied through Jake Morris, Daniel Oyeleye and Evan O’Rourke but Aaron Fleming and Steven Bowler struck for a three each to give the Warriors a 24-11 lead at quarter time.
Padraig Fleming chose the start of the second quarter to unleash a personal volley of 9 points from inside, outside and free throws to keep the pressure on the hosts but Oleyele, Morris and Cillian Cannon combined to cut the gap back to 33-25. However Osayanrhion and Adam O’Keeffe both hit nothing but net from outside to put 14 between the teams. The Warriors maintained that lead to the half time break despite scores from Oyeleye and former St. Brendan’s player Mikey McCarthy for the hosts with both Osayanrhion and Steven Bowler in range and another three from Fernane sealed a 48-37 half time lead.
The sides went score for score and point for point in the third with James Fernane again on target from distance and Dan Bowler, Padraig Fleming and Zigi Kaletka combining to ease the Warriors 18 points ahead. However Maree finished the quarter in style with O’Rourke sparking a response and Oyeleye and a quick double from beyond the arc from Joseph Keane cutting the visitors advantage back to 63-52 at three quarter time.
Maree made further inroads into the Warriors lead early in the fourth through Morris, Oyeleye and Cannon but the Bowler brothers Dan and Steve added to keep the gap intact. James Fernane then took aim to land his fourth major of the game, and after Osayanrhion stepped back to convert from inside, Fernane hit his fifth of the contest to keep double digits between the teams. McCarthy and Oyeleye pared the Warriors advantage down to just 7 points with time running out but Zigi Kaletka nailed two clutch free throws to secure the 81-72 win in the end.
Scorers:
Maree: Daniel Oyeleye 28, Jake Morris 14, Evan O’Rourke 8
Garvey's Tralee Warriors: Josh Osayanrhion 18, James Fernane 17, Dan Bowler 13
Next up for the Garvey’s Tralee Warriors BIDL Men is a home tie against Atlantic Eagles on Sunday next 16th February with tip off at Moyderwell Gym at 1.00pm.
Alan Cantwell reports
Basketball Ireland review:
UCC Demons outscored Energywise Ireland Neptune by 13 points in the fourth quarter to secure a 93-82 victory in Saturday night’s Cork derby in Neptune Stadium that saw them move three points clear at the top of Men’s Super League.
UCC Demons produced a strong finish in Saturday night’s Cork derby in Neptune Stadium, seeing off Energywise Ireland Neptune 93-82 to move three points clear of closest rivals, Killester at the summit of the Men’s Super League table, albeit having played two games more than the Dublin side.
Four points down against Neptune midway through the fourth quarter, Demons fought back with an eight-point run, Patrick Robinson delivering from the floor and free-throw line as he took his game total to a huge 36 points, while Elijah Tillman and Kyle Hosford supplied a further 34.
Neptune, with five players in double figures including Tamyrik Fields on 18, certainly put it up to the current table toppers, but they were, crucially, held scoreless over the closing three minutes of this contest and, consequently, saw their three-game winning run brought to an end.
“That was a great advertisement for basketball tonight” insisted Daniel O’Mahony, UCC Demons head coach. “Both teams gave everything, but I felt Pat Robinson was huge down the stretch to help us get the job done” he said.
Flexachem KCYMS made it four wins in their last six league outings as they weathered a fourth-quarter revival by Irish Guide Dogs Ballincollig @MTU to see off their Cork rivals, 94-88 in Killorglin Sports Complex.
Clayton Ladine and Beni Fungula each put up 25 points for the hosts on Saturday night, while Jeffery Okeke weighed in with 22, to help deny a Ballincollig side who failed to close the gap on their hosts despite recouping 11 points in the fourth quarter.
“That was a good win tonight at home against a very well-drilled Ballincollig side” insisted Declan Wall, Flexachem KCYMS head coach.
“We knew this game was an important one for us, and the lads showed that they have the fight to go for the play-off spots.
“We lost four overtime games this season, which was tough to take, but we keep on pushing” he said.
EJ Sligo All-Stars outgunned Griffith College Éanna by ten points in the fourth quarter to edge a 92-88 victory over the defending Men’s Super League champions in Mercy College.
Robert Montgomery delivered a game-high 31 points and 13 rebounds for Sligo, while Jonathan Brown served up 11 down the stretch for the hosts to take his tally on the night to 18.
Garvey’s Tralee Warriors did much of the heavy lifting in the opening half of their clash with Maree, outgunning their Galway rivals by 24 points by the break, as they ran out 91-54 winners in University of Galway Kingfisher.
Marquavian Stephens emerged with a game-high 22 points, while Brandon Mahan and Daniel Jokubaitis provided an additional 33 for the visitors, who made a swift return to winning ways following their nine-point reversal at the hands of Belfast Star less than week before.
Templeogue took every quarter on their way to an 89-71 success against Bright St. Vincent’s in Saturday night’s Dublin derby in Nord Anglia.
Samuel Henderson drained six of his 11 attempts from beyond the arc and all, but two, of his 18 efforts from inside on his way to a colossal 43 points for the hosts, which went a long way to cancelling out the combined 46 that Isiah Gaiter and JaRon Thames bagged for St. Vincent’s.
Belfast Star battled their way back from eight points down midway through the third quarter to edge a 92-87 victory over UCD Marian in Newforge Sports Complex.
Maximillian Cooper chalked up 22 points and 13 rebounds for the hosts, while De Ondre Jackson and Max Richardson added a further 35 to the scoreboard to help address the combined 52 that Jonathan Jean and Lovre Tvrdic amassed for UCD.
Unbeaten Men’s Division One leaders, Limerick Celtics served up heavy 106-80 defeat to ND Audit Portlaoise Panthers in Crescent College on Saturday night, only three weeks after having beaten the same side in the President’s National Cup decider.
Ulster University made a swift return to winning ways following last week’s agonising one-point loss to Limerick Celtics, as they saw off Tipp Talons 86-80 in Jordanstown Sports Village on Saturday afternoon.
Carrick Cruisers made it four wins on the bounce after they dished out a 102-93 defeat to Titans in Phoenix Centre, while Scotts Lakers Killarney restricted hosts, Team NorthWest to a mere 18 points in the second half as they fought back for a 65-60 win in ATU Donegal.
A big third-quarter performance helped propel Mater Private Malahide to a 92-79 success at home to Limerick Sport Eagles, while Moy Tolka Rovers carded a 109-83 road win over Killarney Cougars in Presentation Gym and Drogheda Wolves surmounted SETU Waterford Vikings 101-92 in Ballymakenny College.
For extended rights-free Division One copy, click here.
Results
Men’s Super League
Saturday February 8th
Energywise Ireland Neptune 82-93 UCC Demons
Belfast Star 92-87 UCD Marian
Maree 54-91 Garvey’s Tralee Warriors
Templeogue 89-71 Bright St. Vincent’s
Flexachem KCYMS 94-88 Irish Guide Dogs Ballincollig @MTU
EJ Sligo All-Stars 92-88 Griffith College Éanna
Men’s Division One
Saturday February 8th
Ulster University 86-80 Tipp Talons
Team NorthWest 60-65 Scotts Lakers Killarney
Limerick Celtics 106-80 ND Audit Portlaoise Panthers
Mater Private Malahide 92-79 Limerick Sport Eagles
Carrick Cruisers 102-93 Titans BC
Killarney Cougars 83-109 Moy Tolka Rovers
Drogheda Wolves 101-92 SETU Waterford Vikings
