Conor Meany: Demons survive derby drama, Éanna hold off Sligo
DERBY DRAMA:l There’s absolutely nothing like it in Irish basketball and the derby delivered yet again as Demons narrowly outlasted Neptune 100-93. Pic Larry Cummins
There’s absolutely nothing like it in Irish basketball and the derby delivered yet again as Demons narrowly outlasted Neptune 100-93. Demons controlled the game early but Neptune showed resolve that had been missing for parts of the year as they clawed their way back into contention. Just as Neptune looked to take control of the game, American Tamyrik Fields inexplicably lost his head on what he felt was a missed call and he got ejected after two technicals.
Neptune looked dead and buried at that point but the heroics of Chance Hunter, who had his best performance of the year with 35 points, brought Neptune right to the cusp of a major upset. It wasn’t to be though as Elijah Tillman came up with big plays down the stretch as Demons needed them and Danny O’Mahony can thank his big man and Kyle Hosford for pulling them through in the big moments. There are no moral victories in games like this but Neptune showed a heart and character that their fans will be proud of. Demons march on though and look forward to a huge game against Tralee next week.
Coming into these playoffs we said that this looked like the most competitive playoffs the women’s league has possibly ever had. St Pauls have been inconsistent this year but, on their day, they have been excellent and probably could have made a Cup final earlier in the year if they had just executed better in the final two minutes against Killester.
On Saturday they had no regrets though as the 8 seed beat the number one seed, something I strongly doubt has ever happened in the women’s league. Alex Wittinger and Gracen Kerr were fantastic, since Wittinger arrived she has looked like a player for the big occasion and delivered again with 25 points and 16 rebounds. Wildcats didn’t get the same production from their pros as Sarah Hickey had to carry the load with 21 while the Americans combined for 23. Ultimately it was a big 2nd quarter that gave St Pauls a 9-point half-time cushion which proved just enough in a very tight game.
The Cup semi-final was a big disappointment for Wildcats as they never got going against Liffey. This was different as it was a competitive game throughout. Ashia McCalla missed last week’s loss to Portlaoise, and she likely wasn’t fully ok as she was limited to just 10 points, well below her 19ppg average. The real story was on the boards though. In all three league losses during the year, Wildcats scored fewer threes than their opponent (shooting a lower percentage) and lost the rebounding battle. That was the combination again on Saturday as St Pauls rebounded brilliantly. Lorraine Scanlon deserves particular mention with her 17 rebounds.
It took a while for Tralee to fully hit their stride in a low scoring first half, but when they got going there was no stopping them as they scored 64 second half points. Tralee’s length and physicality caused Marian issues throughout as the smaller Dublin team turned the ball over far more than usual and struggled to finish around the rim. Tralee have the pieces to win a title, we’ll likely know more about them next week. For Marian it was a season that exceeded expectations as they returned to the Super League and finished 5th overall.
Killester weren’t at their exciting best on Saturday but did enough to advance thanks to an 82-74 win over Ballincollig. Kason Harrell had 19 of his 22 in the first half as Killester built just enough of a buffer to comfortably navigate the second half. Ballincollig were solid, but with Adrian O’Sullivan still hobbled they just didn’t have enough production to live with Killester. Ballincollig were excellent for large parts of the year but have had a tough last month. They will have questions this summer as the majority of their production came from an older Irish core, who are definitely still capable, but they need help.
Éanna held Sligo to just 70 points as they won 79-70 in Dublin. Sligo enjoyed their best season ever in the league, getting to the Cup semi-final and finishing 6th but they just didn’t have enough depth to beat Éanna. The defending champions played nine players in the second half, while Sligo had to play five players for all but 3 minutes. As a result, they looked laboured down the stretch and Éanna had that extra step when needed.
Depth is always a challenge for regional teams like Sligo, but they were unfortunate with Oisin O’Reilly’s injury as he would have given them an extra piece. An extra Irish player or two would raise this team’s ceiling significantly. Éanna have that depth and experience, and they are rounding into form at the right time again. Next week’s clash with Killester will be a blockbuster.
Brunell gave Killester all that they could handle in the first half as they led by as many as 12. Edel Thornton was back to her best scoring 28 in just 26 minutes of action. But it wasn’t enough as Killester came up with a huge response in the second half led by Mini Clarke and Sam Halby. Mark Grennell’s side matched Brunell’s effort and with contributions from all over, including 14 points from Leilani Turner, Brunell just couldn’t keep up.
Brunell obviously missed American Deaja Richardson who got injured last week. Brunell have been plagued by injuries over the past 18 months but if they can stay healthy next year they are right there with the top teams.
Liffey Celtics left no doubt as they topped Glanmire 88-66. Glanmire were playing with one American, and they just couldn’t live with the Cup Champions who showed a much better account of themselves. Hazel Finn played with lots of energy as she scored 15, while Aine O’Connor was excellent with 17 points. When Liffey get big production from their Americans, they are unstoppable, especially as their Irish core are so talented around them. Liffey vs Killester next week is going to be brilliant, and many will consider it the league final. Glanmire were unfortunate to be without an American, hopefully this isn’t the last we see of Aine McKenna and Claire O’Sullivan.
Portlaoise gave Meteors all they could handle in Dublin before eventually coming up short. Panthers limited Emma Merriweather well (which was a key to the game), but Grace Prenter and Morgan Lenahan were brilliant as they pushed Meteors through to the semi-final. Portlaoise deserves credit for a great season, but it’s Meteors who are now looking forward to a home semi-final against St Pauls, something they could only have dreamt of at the start of the year.
