Men’s Premier League – Travelodge Swords Thunder 74, C&S UCC Demons 88
C&S UCC Demons are now in full control of the Men’s Premier League after an 88-74 win at Travelodge Swords Thunder. The victory means the Cork side need only to win their remaining home games to wrap up a League & Cup double for the 2014/2015 season.
Demons are now 18-0 in all competitions but Captain Shane Coughlan admitted this trip to the ALSAA was their toughest test to date.
“Thunder without doubt put it up to us. They’re a fabulous team. We weren’t at our best but Colin picked a five that would bring it home in the last quarter,” he said.
For Colin O’Reilly, it was about proving a point.
“People questioned whether we’d be able to seal the deal in a close game,” said the Player Coach. “We showed tonight we can do it in a hostile environment against a team I think haven’t lost on their home court in three years.”
Swords Thunder Head Coach Dave Baker conceded that the best team won on the night.
“Demons executed very very well. I think we put them under pressure for the first time this year. From my point, I’m very proud of my team. We fought right to the end.”
Thunder were more than a match for Demons for 30 minutes of the game and displayed the right attitude throughout. They trailed by 14 points as Demons poured in early three-pointers for fun but the only real disappointment was that Isaac Westbrooks’ bank-shot from half way didn’t beat the buzzer for the first quarter.
Keith Anderson’s three had the gap down to four before the half and Spenser Mitchell was easily justifying his father Gary’s trip over from the US to catch the game.
The pre-game plan for Thunder was to ensure Demons could only manage a single digit lead heading for the last quarter. When Kevin Lacey stole for Isaac Westbrooks to layup with his right hand, Thunder had levelled the game with 11 minutes to go. Grit and belief had them right back in the game.
So what happened next?
“Thunder didn’t make any mistakes,” said O’Reilly. “We just got into one of those zones that you get into throughout a game.” It brought them a 15-0 run. It went from being 62-62 with nine minutes left to 77-62 with 3 minutes on the clock. Colin O’Reilly was untouchable on the defensive boards while brother Niall was using his frame well in the paint. Colbert and Kyle Hosford score 14 points of the run Shane Coughlan’s no-look dish to the American topped the lot.
Demons finished with 52% accuracy from two-point range and 54% from outside the arc.
Double Winning form.
Read the full play summary and box score at: http://bit.ly/_ALSAA
Swords Thunder Top Scorers: Michael Goj 21, Isaac Westbrooks 16, Kevin Lacey 13
UCC Demons Top Scorers: Lehmon Colbert 29, Kyle Hosford 17, Shane Coughlan 13
HT: Travelodge Swords Thunder 38, C&S UCC Demons 44
Killester 76, DCU Saints 77
DCU Saints put back-to-back wins together for the first time since October with a North Dublin derby victory at the IWA. Saints put together a late run to take the win, even if a couple of mistakes nearly proved costly in the final seconds.
“The first and fourth quarters were the best we’ve played all year,” said Saints Coach Joey Boylan. Mark Nagle was to the fore in the opening exchanges and finished the game with 24 points.
When it came to the fourth, Boylan said, “We made good decisions down the stretch and took good shots.” Eoin Darling hit a three and cut in for a fine layup as Saints pulled the trigger with two minutes to go. Gary Barron and Kevin O’Hanlon carried with confidence while Arkadijs Makarenko got hands to a Jermaine Turner pass and even stole an inbounds for Martins Provizors to dunk. It was an 8-0 run for Saints but there was still plenty of time for drama.
Jermaine Turner had the stamina for a couple of coast-to-coasts and converted 2/2 from the line for an unsportsmanlike foul. As the seconds ticked away, Michael Westbrooks hesitated before realising he was the best option and drained a three to leave just a point between the sides. It proved too little too late but the losing bonus point moved Killester back into second place in the table.
Killester Top Scorers: Jermaine Turner 20, Alan Casey 12, Michael Westbrooks 11
DCU Saints Top Scorers: Mark Nagle 24, Eoin Darling 16, Martins Provizors 15
HT: Killester 39, DCU Saints 38
BFG Neptune 95, Templeogue 84
Neptune Top Scorers: Michael Bonaparte 24, Gary Walsh 22, Roy Downey 21
Templeogue Top Scorers: Jason Killeen 24, Conor Grace 17, Lorcan Murphy 9
HT: BFG Neptune 45, Templeogue 47
UCD Marian 92, UL Eagles 71
UCD Marian Top Scorers: Preston Ross 25, Conor Meany 24, Neil Baynes 20
UL Eagles Top Scorers: Orlando Parker 20, Neil Campbell 14, Scott Kinevane 13
HT: UCD Marian 53, UL Eagles 34
Women’s Premier League
Meteors 73, Maxol WIT Wildcats 60
Meteors Top Scorers: Christine Ganser 22, Kate O’Flaherty 14, Jade Daly 14
Wildcats Top Scorers: Olivia Applewhite 24, Claire Leavey 10, Stephanie O’Shea 9
HT: Meteors 49, Maxol WIT Wildcats 25
Killester 64, Team Montenotte Hotel 71
Killester Top Scorers: Robin Murphy 20, Olivia Lee 9, Elaine Stone 9
Team Montenotte Hotel Scorers: Niamh Dwyer 27, Grainne Dwyer 12, Marie Breen 12
HT: Killester 26, Team Montenotte Hotel 34
Men’s Division One
SSE Airtricity Moycullen 56, Fr Mathews 46
Moycullen Top Scorers: Paul Freeman 20, James Loughnane 9, Dylan Cunningham 8
Fr. Mathews Top Scorers: Sean Cantwell 13, Daragh Fleming 11, Paul O’Driscoll 9
HT: SSE Airtricity Moycullen 26, Fr Mathews 17
C&S Blue Demons 86, JM&L Auctioneers Titans 68
Blue Demons Top Scorers: Liam Carmody 19, David Murphy 16, Shane McCarthy 13
Titans Top Scorers: Paulius Peldzius 20, Darryl Durham 18, Tomas Mitkus 9
HT: C&S Blue Demons 42, JM&L Auctioneers Titans 30
Maree 96, Team Left Bank Kilkenny 69
Maree Top Scorers: Kenneth Hansberry 22, Matt Hornbuckle 17, Cathal Finn 14
Team Left Bank Top Scorers: Puff Summers 18, Julian O’Keeffe 15, James Butler 14
HT: Maree 49, Team Left Bank Kilkenny 33
Women’s Division One
ITC Basketball 47, Garveys Tralee Imperials 57
ITC Basketball Top Scorers: Aine Sheehy 23, Aisling Hayden 8, Sheila Sheehy 5
Tralee Imperials Top Scorers: Emma Sherwood 14, Lynn Jones 13, Loretta Maher 11
HT: ITC Basketball 28, Garveys Tralee Imperials 27
Team Denjoes American Style 57, Oblate Dynamos 28
TDAS Top Scorers: Lorraine Scanlon 20, Eileen O’Connor 10, Eabhnait Scanlon 6
Oblate Top Scorers: Jennifer Morabito 14, Georgina McKenna 4, Alison Keech 3
HT: Team Denjoes American Style 24, Oblate Dynamos 11
Sunday 8 February 2015
Portlaoise Panthers v NUIG Mystics
Singleton Supervalu Brunell v DCU Mercy
Belfast Star v Dublin Inter
UL Huskies v Courtyard Liffey Celtics
RESULTS:
Wednesday 4 February 2015
Women’s Premier League
DCU Mercy 61, Meteors 50
Saturday 7 February 2015
Men’s Premier League
Travelodge Swords Thunder 74, C&S UCC Demons 88
UCD Marian 92, UL Eagles 71
BFG Neptune v Templeogue, Neptune Stadium, Cork, 19:00
Killester 76, DCU Saints 77
Women’s Premier League
Meteors 73, Maxol WIT Wildcats 60
Killester 64, Team Montenotte Hotel 71
Men’s Division One
SSE Airtricity Moycullen 56, Fr Mathews 46
C&S Blue Demons 86, JM&L Auctioneers Titans 68
Maree 96, Team Left Bank Kilkenny 69
Women’s Division One
ITC Basketball 47, Garveys Tralee Imperials 57
Team Denjoes American Style v Oblate Dynamos, St. Marys Community Centre, 19:30
Sunday 8 February 2015
Men’s Premier League
Belfast Star v Dublin Inter, Methodist College, Belfast, 15:00
Women’s Premier League
Singleton Supervalu Brunell v DCU Mercy, Parochial Hall, Cork, 14:45
UL Huskies v Courtyard Liffey Celtics, UL Sport Arena, Limerick 15:00
Women’s Division One
Portlaoise Panthers v NUIG Mystics, St Mary’s Hall, Laois, 14:00
Men’s Premier League Recaps
Wednesday 4 February 2015
Women’s Premier League
DCU Mercy 61, Meteors 50
DCU Mercy Top Scorers: Caroline Stewart 22, Sarah Woods 12, Sarah McGrath 10, Peggy Black 10
Meteors Top Scorers: Christine Ganser 20, Katie Ganser 8, Beth Meany 7
HT: DCU Mercy 27, Meteors 22
