Demons edge out Saints to stay top

UCC Demons coach, Douglas Leichner, was a happy man after his side came from behind in a spectacular finish to beat DCU Saints 86-82 and keep their NIVEA for MEN SuperLeague record straight.

The sides were level at 37 apiece at half time and Demons trailed going into the fourth quarter before two late three-pointers from the game’s top scorer, Ryan Hamblet, secured the victory that left Coach Leichner smiling.

“It was a tough game. DCU were ready to play. They came and gave it their best shot — which I thought was great because we took a punch and were able to respond,” Leichner said.

“Ryan (Hamblet) hit some big shots for us. He had a good game offensively as well as Colin O’Reilly. They hit the big shots we needed and we made some key stops as well so it was a good win. It was a good test for us and that is what we are taking out of this. A road win is always a good win.”

For Saints, Mike Trimmer was in fine form, while David Donnelly chipped in with another impressive scoring tally.

It was another dramatic weekend for the SuperLeague as the Icelandic financial crisis gave another club a welcome boost with Michael Bonaparte returning to play a huge part (26 points) in DART Killester’s 79-75 overtime win over Limerick Lions.

Bonaparte is the second player to return due to the financial meltdown in Iceland after Colin O’Reilly returned to UCC Demons last week.

“I am really happy to be back and that I could return to this team,” said Bonaparte. “Even though I was in Iceland for two weeks, I am looking forward to getting back with this team and making it a winning season.”

DART’s winning run looked in jeopardy when Paddy Kelly was ejected for an altercation with Limerick’s Sean Coffey in a fiery third quarter. However, DART coach, Mark Keenan, believes the sending off proved motivational for his charges.

They were tied at 70 points each at the end of an enthralling game but overtime proved too much for the Limerick side as they seemed to run out of steam. DART’s defence pushed ahead and standout players Jim Grabowski, John Behan and Pete Madsen all connected with key baskets and a long 3-pointer to put the Dublin team up by a quick nine points and they never looked back.

Lions Head Coach, Sasa Punosevac, saw it as a missed opportunity but he was pleased with his side’s display: “We played tactically very well,” he said. “We broke their pressing and zone pressing. We should have won though because we had that fine advantage with just two minutes on the clock.”

HOOPS Head Coach, Ahmad Smith, believes his side were very lucky to come away with a 77-73 win from their clash with Ulster Elks.

“We were very lucky to come away with a win,” said Smith. “I don’t know if we will be as lucky next weekend if we perform in a similar fashion against UCC Demons.”

Elks coach, Deirdre Brennan, was disappointed not to have earned their first win of the season but confident the win is not too far away.

“I think it is just experience,” said Brennan. “I was pleased with our performance, in our first two games we struggled to perform as a team so I see this game as another step forward. We let Hoops out of jail, we just have to learn how to close a game out and that’s what we didn’t manage to do.”

Basketball Ireland’s Women’s Superleague saw Tolka Rovers end a 10 month drought with a devastating away win over DART Killester, while Team Montenotte Hotel Cork claimed the Cork derby but were made to work extremely hard against Superleague rookies Leisureworld Churchfield Iona at Neptune Stadium.

DCU Mercy joined Montenotte at the top of the table with victory away to Waterford Wildcats, while UL Aughinish accounted for Meteors.