Basketball
Disappointment
By Daire Walsh
THERE was disappointment for Griffith College Templeogue and DBS Éanna in the InsureMyVan.ie Men’s Super League last Saturday, following their respective defeats at the hands of EJ Sligo All-Stars and Belfast Star.
Having recorded back-to-back wins against Bright St Vincent’s and the aforementioned Belfast Star, Templeogue were hoping to extend their winning run against EJ Sligo at the National Basketball Arena.
It seemed to be going according to plan for the hosts early on, with eight points from Neil Randolph helping them to develop an 18-17 cushion at the end of the first-quarter. While Sligo subsequently gained a stranglehold and led by 11 points (31-20) with just over seven minutes to go until half-time, Templeogue rallied superbly to leave the sides on level terms at 45-45.
Just as he had done in the opening quarter, Randolph registered a brace of three-pointers to galvanise the Templeogue challenge. Francis Mulvihill, James Gormley and Luke Thompson also shone to keep the southsiders well in contention.
Although the teams remained evenly matched on the resumption, Sligo brought a slender one-point cushion (69-68) into the final-quarter and eventually succumbed Templeogue to a 97-90 reversal.
While Thompson (23) and Randolph (21) passed the 20-point barrier, Mulvihill (16) and Gormley (15) also featured prominently in the scoring stakes. Next up for 10th-place Templeogue is a short trip to Ballyroan on Saturday to face DBS Éanna at 7pm.
Darren McGovern’s eighth-place side will be aiming to rediscover their own winning form after losing out 87-67 to Belfast Stars on the road at De La Salle College. 24-13 behind at the end of the first-quarter, Éanna gave themselves a fighting chance of success by reducing their deficit to three points (43-40) at half-time.
The Belfast men had outstanding performers in Maximilian Cooper and Max Richardson, however, and developed a 73-47 third-quarter advantage that proved too much for Éanna to overcome. Nevertheless, Marko Tomic did record 17 points in defeat for the visitors, with Sean Jenkins and Romonn Nelson (13 points apiece) providing strong support.
Meanwhile, having suffered three straight losses in Men’s Division One, Abbey Seals Dublin Lions finally got off the mark with a 93-85 triumph against Portlaoise Panthers at St Mary’s Hall.
There was little to separate the sides throughout – it was level pegging moving into the final-quarter – but a combined haul of 75 points from Kevin Obasuyi, Ringo Dau and Tiernan Howe helped to get the Lions over the line and into 10th spot in the table. Next up for them is a home encounter with Limerick Celtics at Colaiste Bride in Clondalkin this Saturday at 7.30pm.