Conor Meaney on basketball: Killester end 44-year title drought in style
FAMILY AFFAIR: Killester won the title to end a long wait.
Killester’s women are Super League Champions after an impressive 90-62 win over Liffey Celtics in a title deciding playoff. Built on an impressive defense, Killester have as good a starting five as we’ve seen in Ireland and on the biggest stage they put in a dream performance for Mark Grennell.
Ieva Bagdanaviciene started them off perfectly with 11 of her 26 points in the first quarter, while they got double digits out of all of their key contributors. From the moment Killester signed Claire Melia it was a statement of intent, and the 2023 Cup champions are deserving 2024 league champions. As someone who was fortunate enough to win for my own family club 40 years after my dad and uncle did it last for Marian, it was brilliant to see Mimi Clarke accepting the trophy from her aunt, Breda Dick, while her mum and more of the 1980 league champions were in the crowd. Martin Grennell coached that team back in 1980 and for Mark Grennell to coach his cousin to the title in 2024 is a fitting end for a wonderful basketball family and club. For Liffey it was a disappointing day, that they will feel they underperformed in, although they’ll be the first to acknowledge that Killester had a major hand in that. Especially with a generational talent like Sorcha Tiernan there are better days ahead for the Kildare side.
Defending champions Ballincollig are out after losing 83-70 at home to Killester. It’s a disappointing end for the defending champions who couldn’t survive foul trouble to Shawndale Jones and a tough match up with Killester. Like his brother Jonny Grennell deserves a lot of credit for the job he’s done with this Killester squad. He made a big call after Christmas to move away from American Richardson and to go for a smaller lineup that moved Gregario Adon to the 5 position. It paid huge dividends on Saturday as they spread out Ballincollig and picked them apart. Americans Troy Simmons and Kason Harrell both had some joy, but it was Paul Dick’s 23 that really separated the teams. Dick has more space to attack the basket and post up as a big guard and he was very effective. Ballincollig will be disappointed that they couldn’t punish Killester with their size on the other end. Killester look like a team entering form at the right time, could the men’s and women’s titles be both heading to one home?
It takes a special game to make you swear in disbelief at the screen, and that’s exactly what happened as James Hannigan hit a corner three for Demons to send a brilliant game to overtime. Star were in complete control, up 12 with two and a half minutes to go but a late collapse from the home side saw Demons claw their way back into the game. In a game that had a controversial build-up that saw Tamyrik Fields deemed eligible to play at the 11th hour due to an appeal, there was clearly tension there throughout the game. Once the late lead had slipped for Star, Demons evidently believed and despite Seventh Woods fouling out the Cup Champions willed their way to a monumental victory. Star will be gutted after such a strong season to bow out so early in the playoffs at the hands of the same team who knocked them out of the Cup. Their defense ultimately let them down as they gave up 33 fourth-quarter points at home, something they just couldn’t afford to do. Demons deserve to go on, based purely on their will to win. Their matchup with Killester will be a fascinating one as Killester have no size for Tillman at all.
The @jameshannigan09 shot that kept @Bluedemons_BC season alive! pic.twitter.com/JnVnPxcufo
— Conor Meany (@conormeany) March 24, 2024
6’11 James Gormley outjumping 7’2 Cian Sullivan and finishing with 0.4 seconds to go on the clock, was all that separated Tralee and Eanna in an entertaining playoff game. Tralee performed excellently and with Elijah Weaver leading the way they led by as many as many as 15. Trailing by 13 at the half, Eanna saw Josh Wilson and Sean Jenkins come to life with 30 of their 40 combined points. It was a scare for Eanna but one they’ve survived. The old adage is ‘survive and advance’ and Eanna now look forward to a trip to Maree. For Tralee, it was an interesting season where they got to blood some new Irish talent and they’ll wonder what would have happened had Ryan Leonard stayed healthy. I don’t think they got their Americans right most of the year and I think part of the Tralee DNA is a big physical presence inside like a Roso or Pantovic. It will be interesting to see how they are built next year and if we will see the likes of Donaghy, Jokubaitis and Quigley again.
Despite Shon Briggs' best efforts, Maree had too much for Sligo with a balanced attack with five players in double digits. Maree at their best are the best team in the country for me. They have stumbled a small bit in recent weeks but will be relishing a rematch with Eanna after a recent heavy defeat. Sligo will be happy with their season reaching the playoffs, but they just don’t have enough depth in contributors and are too reliant on their Americans coming up with big performances.
Away from the Super League, it’s worth giving a mention for Bronagh Power Cassidy’s 19 points in the NCAA tournament against one of the superstars of women’s basketball Caitlin Clark. Holy Cross ultimately came up short, but it was a monumental performance on the biggest stage by the Dubliner. Ireland’s been waiting for a high-level professional for a number of years with Susan Moran the last to get close to the WNBA and Niamh Dwyer the last to reach Euroleague level. It would be fantastic to see Bronagh test the professional game and see where it takes her.
Waterford Wildcats had too much for Fr Mathews in the Champions Trophy winning 87-77 thanks to a strong start that saw them lead by 16 at the half. Jade Compton and Alarie Mayze were both in strong form and they’ll be looking forward to a rematch with Liffey Celtics who beat them convincingly last week. Fr Mathews had a solid season but need an influx of depth and youth if they are to continue staying relevant in the coming years. In the other quarter final, Brunell overcame in form Glanmire to set up a semi final with League Champions Killester. It is a tough end for Glanmire who are one of only three teams to beat Killester this season.
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