Garvey's Tralee Warriors have been beaten 75-80 at UCC Demons in the Dominos Men's Super League.
Just a week after their National Cup final defeat, Garvey's Tralee Warriors lost out again to Cork opposition in the form of a defiant UCC Demons who continued their mid-season revival and quest to stave off relegation fears. The win moves Demons off the bottom of the table up to one one spot away from the top eight playoff places. The Warriors went into the contest without the services of captain Eoin Quigley and his all round play was missed, particularly defensively.
The contest began with a personal duel between Iggy Hunte and Demons American Jordan Washington with Hunte hitting the Warriors first four scores and Washington firing down five in a row for Demons to see the hosts take an early lead. Cian Sullivan and Jordan Perkins then both slated their first scores of the game but sharpshooting James Hannigan hit a typical major score for Demons and Tala Fam Thiam put four points to his name late on to give the home side a 20-12 lead at quarter time.
Washington continued to torment the Warriors and their fans with his sixth of the game early in the second quarter before Daryll Cuff bombed down two identical threes to put 13 between the sides and force a Warriors timeout. Out of the break the Warriors response was immediate with major strikes from Daniel Jokubaitis and Olaf Michalczuk negating Cuff's double and Hunte, Perkins and Sullivan added to pare the gap back to 4. Live Kivuvu was sprung from the Demons bench to hit a quickfire hat trick and with Tala Fam in range and Cuff spearing another three the Demons blew the lead out to 45-27. Hunte added again from play and two from the line to keep Warriors in touch, but Tala Fam with two close range efforts helped Demons to a potentially game winning 51-31 lead at the long break.
Demons threatened to shut the gate on the game early in their third with Washington and Tala Fam again on the mark. However Warriors would always have their period of dominance in the game and it began with Perkins landing from inside and outside either side of a Hunte double and when Hunte continued to find a way to the Demons board he added another four in a row for good measure had the home side reeling. Demons went a full six minutes without a score apart from a fast break layup from captain Dave Lehane and when Cian Sullivan added and Daniel Jokubaitis nailed a three the Warriors had cut the gap to just seven heading into the final quarter.
The Warriors momentum carried into the final quarter with baskets from Sullivan, Perkins and Hunte and another cracking three from Michalczuk cutting the Demons lead to a single score. However that was as good as it got for Warriors as by the midpoint of the quarter they were in foul trouble and despite Jokubaitis and Perkins hitting nothing but net from outside to keep the result in the balance, five trips to the free throw line shared between Washington, Tala Fam and Lehane allowed Demons secure the win by 80-75 in the end.
Scorers:
UCC Demons: Jordan Washington 31, Tala Fam Thiam 22, Live Kivuvu 10
Garvey's Tralee Warriors: Iggy Hunte 29, Jordan Perkins 14, Cian Sullivan 12
The Warriors now face three tough games in a row as the playoff race intensifies. Firstly they make the long trip to take on League leaders Belfast on Sunday and the following week have a tricky tie against a resurgent St. Vincent's in Dublin before a repeat of the National Cup final when they welcome Ballincollig to the Kerry Sports Academy on Friday 13th of February.
(Pictures courtesy of Liam Ryan)
Basketball Ireland weekend review:
Energywise Ireland Neptune caused an upset by winning 83-69 at recently crowned Domino's MSL National Cup champions Ballincollig in the Domino's Men's Super League on Saturday. Michael Hayes and Eoin Nelson combined for 46 points in the Cork derby against a Ballincollig side who were missing American forward Latavious Mitchell. It is back-to-back league losses for Ballincollig, Ciaran O'Sullivan's side drop to third, after Killester’s victory on Saturday and Belfast Star's win over Limerick Celtics on Sunday.
Victory for Ciaran Kiveney's team moves them off the bottom of the table, to 10th. The four teams at the foot of the table each have four wins, however current 12th-placed side Flexacham KCYMS do have a game in hand.
Belfast Star are now alone at the top of the Domino's Men's Super League table, after a convincing 89-66 win over Limerick Celtics in UL Arena on Sunday. Star led by as much as 29 points in the game with a first half that was dominated by Irish international Rapolas Buivydas. Buivydas recovered from an injury midweek to start on Sunday and scored 19 of his 21 points in the first two quarters of action. Roger Wilson scored 22 points in 25 minutes of play, to ensure Star went back to Belfast with a record of 11-3. For Celtics, despite positive games from Ruairi Cronin and Tony Hauser, who combined for 29 points in the defeat, they remain in eighth, occupying the final playoff spot, just one win ahead of the four sides below them in the table.
Killester are up to second, after they defeated Flexachem KCYMS in overtime, 75-68. Americans Josh Wilson and Robert Braswell combined for 50 points. Killorglin managed to build as much as a 13-point advantage, but a strong second half from Killester sent the game to overtime, at 67-67. An 8-1 overtime period gave Killester the victory and saw them move to a 10-4 record alongside Ballincollig, one win behind Belfast Star.
St. Vincent’s picked up a vital win in the playoff race, following a 73-68 Dublin derby triumph over Griffith College Éanna. Vincent’s had four players in double digits - James Phelan, William Thomas, Marcellus Garrick and Adam Lisewski. The game featured 15 lead changes and a 26-point final quarter from St. Vincent's, ensured they took home the win by five points. It puts Vincent's in a strong position for the last home playoff tie spot, as they sit at 8-6 alongside both 5th-placed Griffith College Éanna and 4th-placed UCD Marian.
UCD Marian stayed in fourth thanks to a 115-95 road victory at EJ Sligo All-Stars, who slipped down to 11th as a result. Zachary Hinton had a 33-point game for Marian, along with strong 28-point and 18-point games from Bruce Saintilus and Ronan Byrne, respectively. RJ Etyle-Rock and Jordan Hinds managed to score 51 points between them for Sligo.
UCC Demons ensured they did not fall behind in the battle against relegation, following an 80-75 victory over Garvey's Tralee Warriors. Despite still missing Tamyrik Fields through suspension, Demons managed to amass a 25-point advantage during the game. Jordan Washington scored 31 points in 30 minutes of action, along with 13 rebounds, for the Cork outfit. He was flanked by a 22-point game from Tala Fam Thiam. Demons are now just one win away from the final playoff spot, currently occupied by Limerick Celtics. The loss for Tralee sees them fall a game behind the three teams above them, sitting in seventh with a 7-6 record.
Killester remain at the top of the Domino’s Women’s Super League, following an 82-78 overtime victory over Gurranabraher Credit Union Brunell. Irish international Edel Thornton scored a team-high 18 points for Brunell, but Killester’s trio of Ieva Bagdanaviciene, Samantha Haiby and Michelle Clarke scored 68 of Killester’s 82 points, with Bagdanaviciene scoring four of Killester’s 10 points in overtime to secure the victory.
The loss for Brunell sees them fall to 7-5 for the season and drop down to fourth, with UCC Glanmire moving up to third, following their 88-68 win at Domino's WSL National Cup finalists FloMAX Liffey Celtics.
Utility Trust St. Paul's Killarney are keeping pace with Killester at the top of the table, James Fleming's side had a 89-65 win at Catalyst Fr. Mathews. Maisie Burnham and Tara Cousins combined for 53 points for the victors, who now have a 9-3 record alongside Killester. Catalyst Fr. Mathews remain rooted to the bottom of the table, two two games behind the nearest side - Midlands Park Portlaoise Panthers, who are at 2-10.
FloMAX Liffey Celtics had their five-game winning streak in the league ended by UCC Glanmire, who picked up an impressive 88-68 road success. Glanmire’s duo of Viane Cumber and Jewel Watkins ran the show, with Cumber scoring 32 points and Watkins adding 29. There were six lead changes in the first quarter, but after that, Glanmire did not surrender the lead for the remainder of the game. Glanmire enter the top three of the table and are just one win off the top two, with a record of 8-4. Celtics now find themselves in eighth place with a 6-6 record, but are level with Waterford Wildcats and McEvoy Cavan Eagles, who are seventh and sixth, respectively.
Irish international Sarah Hickey scored three points inside the final 15 seconds to give SETU Waterford Wildcats a 74-71 win over Trinity Meteors. A tough drive leading to a score and one foul from Hickey, gave Wildcats the win after defending the final possession. Those three points from Hickey capped off a 33-point and 11-rebound double-double game for 7th-placed Wildcats. Trinity Meteors are 5th, at 7-5, one win behind third-placed UCC Glanmire.
McEvoy’s Cavan Eagles enjoyed their largest win of the season, thanks to a 30-point triumph over Midlands Park Portlaoise Panthers in St. Mary’s Hall. The 83-53 victory has put the promoted side into sixth spot. There were big performances from Soleil Barnes, who had 25 and Mazatkan Harris, who had 19. Jessica Fressle had a 17-point game for the Panthers, who missed the chance to pull further clear from Catalyst Fr. Mathews.
