Inside Basketball: Demons derby delight, Glanmire set the bar, Tralee's new starlet
KEY MAN:Â UCC Demons' Michael Randolph Jr gets his shot off against Ballincollig in the Men's Super League clash at Ballincollig Community School.
Although the UCC Demons-Ballincollig derby doesn’t hold the same weight as the Neptune rivalry, the importance of Saturday's 98-88 derby win can’t be overstated for Demons. Having slipped up against both Sligo and Moycullen, pressure has been mounting on Demons in recent weeks. Going to Ballincollig and getting a win was important, but the manner in which they did it was even more impressive. MJ Randolph was incredible, displaying an impressive offensive arsenal on his way to 38 points. His ability to play through contact separates him from some of the other American guards in the country and he looks to be a brilliant find for Demons.
Earlier in this season, we wondered whether Demons were going to be at their best when they played smaller. One of the keys against Emporium Cork Basketball was their ability to play man to man and move away from the zone which they have played for large parts of the first half of the season. Doing this, Danny O’Mahony reduced the minutes of his Bosman big man, Kingsley Nwagboso, and trusted veteran Carlton Cuff to match up with Emporium’s big men. Cuff delivered for Demons with 11 points and the move to man allowed Demons be more disruptive playing in the passing lanes. Randolph had multiple steals and Demons were able to get out on the fast break in a way that bodes well for the rest of the season.
From a Ballincollig perspective they will be disappointed by some of their turnovers on Saturday and to give up 98 points on their home floor. The absence of Jose Jimenez Gonzales was a major factor in the issues they faced offensively. Without the Spaniard, who is averaging over 20 points a game, there was no offence outside of their guards. Adrian O’Sullivan was excellent with 26 pts and they got an additional 43 from their import backcourt but there was no inside threat to make Demons worry about during the game. Ballincollig play lovely basketball but against the top teams they may need to have a more direct solution at times during games. Jose Gonzales can definitely provide those solutions and the Cork side will need him back, especially if they are to unlock a switching Eanna side in the Cup semi-final.
Glanmire’s rise into the team to beat this year took another step forward with a dominant 81-69 display against Wildcats in Waterford on Saturday. Earlier in the year it looked like the Cork side would be too reliant on Brittany Byrd to lead them offensively but in recent weeks their Irish contingent have risen to the mark and they now have the most balanced and explosive offense in the country. The Glanmire side are now averaging over 90 points a game in the league, by far the best mark. Liffey Celtics are second with 83 a game and no other team manages more than 80 a game. Although they are happy to play in a shootout, Glanmire’s defence was key in stifling Wildcats. Karli Seay has been a big factor offensively this year for Wildcats and yet she only had 2 points through three quarters for Waterford. By the time she came more into the game, the result was beyond doubt.
Trinity Meteors will be coming to terms with the fact that they are heading into the Cup semi-final and are quickly becoming the most realistic challenge to a Glanmire Championship. Meteors have only lost once this season (away to DCU) and did so without Dayna Finn. They will believe that when they have everyone, there is no team that can stop them this year. Heading into Friday night’s game in Cork, the fear for Brunell was that without their American they would be dominated inside, and this proved the case as Claire Melia and Celena Taborn combined for 45 points on the way to 81-60 win. Even without a second American, Meteors have the best inside presence in the country and they’ll be relishing a title push early in 2023.
After being dumped out of the Cup by Maree, Belfast Star responded last week with a brilliant balanced display in Galway. This week they followed up with another dominant display on the road to St Vincent’s. The northside venue isn’t the easiest place to play but Belfast were incredibly efficient as they dominated a Vincent’s team without their 6’9 big man Giorgi Tvalabeishvili. Without their big man Vincent’s looked out of sorts managing just 23 points in the first half and Star took full advantage as they worked inside through Shon Briggs (21) and Irish big man Oisin Kerlin (14). At 8-2, and with one very surprising road loss to Templeogue, Star have flown largely under the radar and the 2020 league winners will be a team to watch post-Christmas.
Coming into this game, Maree had just had serious questions asked of them in a loss to Belfast Star and Killorglin had enjoyed a dominant home game against UCD Marian. It was the third game between the teams so people were expecting a close game. Maree have a special place for Killorglin in their minds that stems from their time in Division 1 and they looked particularly up for this game. In a surprisingly dominant display Eoin Rockall and Stephen Cummins again led the way offensively as they combined for 32 in the first half. Killorglin’s offence was limited throughout and disappointingly they looked like they threw in the towel late on, losing at home 98-61. Despite the talent they have recruited in, Killorglin have not been able to push on yet this evening and a playoff spot looks increasingly unlikely.
Returning to the National Basketball Arena, the site of their league and cup championships last year, was just what the doctor ordered for Tralee as they produced their most dominant display of the year. In an incredible first quarter they scored 37 points and led by 28 points before eventually winning 89-75 in a score line that flattered the home team. Tralee had great contributions from Jokubaitis, Jackson and Jokic but most notable in the early dominance was the move of 17-year-old Aivaras Uosis into the starting line-up. For those within basketball circles, Uosis has been talked about for more than a year since a YouTube workout video was first posted. At just 17 he has a body more ready than most Super League players and a skills set that is catching up. At 6’ 6 he provides John Dowling with another guard capable of switching and with length and athleticism. Like Ryan Leonard and Rapolas Buivydas before him, Uosis won’t be in Ireland for long so fans should go enjoy him while they can.
At the bottom of the Women’s Super League NUIG Mystics were the only team without a win heading into this weekend as they faced a road trip to fellow bottom dwellers University of Ulster. Mystics have been building towards a win in recent weeks and last week’s reintroduction of AFLW star Aine McDonagh only helped bolster that improvement. Fittingly Mystic’s first win of the year was delivered on the back of 29 points by 19 year old Kara McCleane. This Mystics team has lots of exciting young talent and if they get Hazel Finn back soon they could cause problems for lots more teams this season.
One of Eanna’s losses this season came at home to Sligo All Stars and with 45 seconds to go on Saturday night it looked like the westerners were about to do the double. Both teams were without critical members of their squad but the game was still entertaining and closely fought. Eanna looked in control until a late surge from Sligo saw them lead by three late on thanks to brilliant work by Oisin O’Reilly (27) and Tom Child (22). When Eanna were being asked questions of Stefan Desnica and Kristijan Andabaka, both provided big replies which bodes well for the Dubliners. The biggest response though came with just one second left on the clock as the ball found its way to Sean Jenkins in the corner and the Cork man’s three pointer proved the difference between the teams (93-90). It was another imperfect win by Eanna and yet going into a difficult environment and snatching victory from the jaws of defeat like they did says so much about their character.
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