Buzzer-beater gives St Brendan's cup, Ravens overcome Celtics
St Brendans Tralee's Daniel Bowler celebrates in the team pile up after the final buzzer. Pic ©INPHO/Ben Brady
Fergal O’Sullivan hit an end of game buzzer beating three to give St. Brendan’s a dramatic 61-60 win over Barrow Rovers to clinch the NICC Men’s National Cup.
The Kerry outfit had possession with 0.8 seconds left on the clock and found the former Garvey’s Tralee Warriors man in space and he hit a nerveless winner.
O’Sullivan said: “We don’t do things in half measures in Kerry, but yeah pretty exciting at the end. It was a great battle, they’re a very good team and I am just delighted, it hasn’t really sunk in yet.”
He added, “I looked at the clock and it was 0.8, which allows a catch and shoot. The play was run for Padraig (Fleming), to get Padraig the ball, but I knew getting Padraig with a good back screen would probably get me open and that’s what happened. I didn’t hit a shot all day, I have been injured all week, struggling and the one at the end mattered I suppose.”
This was an extremely tight contest throughout, Barrow Rovers were seven points up early in the first quarter, Jamie Viciana’s basket had them 13-6 up with three minutes to go. St. Brendan’s brought game level at 13-13 when Padraig Fleming unleashed a long range three to beat the end of quarter buzzer.
St. Brendan’s opened up a six-point lead, 19-13, in the third minute of the second quarter when Daniel Bowler rebounded in. A layup and jump shot from the pacy Rowies Leandro and it was 30-26 to Barrow going into the final minute. Leandro would go on to claim the game MVP. A shotclock beating stepback two point jump shot by Bowler brought back level at the end of the quarter, 30-30, and his game tally was 13 points at that stage, he’d finish with a game-high 22.
The third quarter mirrored the opening half, St. Brendan’s were up by eight, 40-32, following O’Sullivan’s layup. Barrow Rovers responded with a nine point run, started by Francesco Gesess’ three and ended by his fastbreak and layup, to put them 41-40 up. Next it was St. Brendan’s to go on a nine-point run, Padraig Fleming’s basket brought his tally to 20, the Kerry club 49-41 ahead. Barrow Rovers finished with a flourish, to make it a three point game, trailing 49-46.
It was level once more at 51-51 two and a half minutes into the fourth quarter, following Xabier Mendizabal’s second three of the game. A layup from Jamie Viciana and it was 56-53 to Barrow Rovers with four minutes remaining.
A pair of Rowies free throws had Barrow Rovers up by five, 59-54 with 2’43” to go, however a Bowler layup and two free throws from Aaron Fleming made it a one-point game once more, 59-58. A Viciani free throw stretched the lead marginally, 60-58, into the closing stages, before the late drama saw St. Brendan’s claim victory.
Javier Vazquez Hernandez (5), Darshan Umapthi (0), Steve Bleeker (10), Francesco Gesess (5), Rowies Leandro (8), Fco, Javier Cardona (2), Pl Sangamenshwaran (12), Pedro Casraneda (0), Xabier Mendizabal (8), Silva Vera Gonzalo (1), Oscar Farley (DNP), Jamie Viciana (9).
Fergal O’Sullivan (8), Michael Kelliher (DNP), Ryan Sheehy (3), Liam O’Sullivan (2), Gary Lynch (0), Cian Horgan (DNP), Robert Mulcahy (2), Adam O’Keeffe (DNP), Daniel Bowler (22), Aaron Fleming (4), Padraig Fleming (20).
Dundalk Ravens defeated defending champions Limerick Celtics 71-63 after overtime to win the U20 Men’s National Cup at the National Basketball Arena on Sunday.
It is a first National Cup title for Ravens, a club which was formed in 2007 by Fu and Triona Faapito. The U20 men's team is coached by their son, Elijah Faapito, who was asked how it felt to seal the title. “Amazing, it’s been a long time coming, we’ve been working so hard, we fell down a couple of hurdles the last couple of years, but we said we’d trust the process, keep working hard and we’re going to make it and we did.”
There was nothing between the sides in the early stages of this final, Limerick Celtics edged the first quarter 21-19. Dundalk Ravers were 30-25 in front at the midpoint of the second quarter, following free throws by Colm Hackett. But Philip Kearney, who won the Men’s Presidents’ Cup final on Saturday with Limerick Celtics, was having a strong opening half. He first picked out Martin Frawley for his basket, before levelling matters himself from the three point line to make it 30-30. Limerick Celtics would hold a slender 35-34 lead by half-time.
It was level gain at 43-43 with a little over four minutes to go in the third, before a corner three by Kearney nudged Limerick Celtics 46-43 ahead. Dundalk Ravens finished the quarter strongly thanks to baskets from Gustas Pocevicius and Mascuud Haji to trail 49-48.
A corner three from Pocevicius put Dundalk Ravens 51-49 up in the opening seconds of the fourth quarter. That lead for the County Louth club was 55-49 three minutes in, following Pocevicius’ layup, he’d picked up 19 points by then and would end with 25 points, 11 rebounds, eight steals and five assists, as he claimed the MVP.
Limerick Celtics went on a seven point run, layups from Martin Frawley and Cian Gleeson, followed by a corner three by Sean Ryan, put Tony Hehir’s side 57-55 ahead just after the quarter midpoint. A floater from Pocevicius brought this game level once more, at 60-60, with ninety seconds to go. Both sides had chances to win it in regulation, but overtime was required.
Dundalk Ravens got off to the perfect start with a corner three from Conor Mac Criosta and a Franciszek Chmielecki basket in the opening minute, to put them 65-60 up. Two Pocevicius free throws followed, only for that run to finally be snapped by Matthew Barry’s three, to see the score at 67-63 with 2’42” to go.
Limerick Celtics needed points down the stretch, but there hopes were extinguished in the last 30 seconds, following a brilliant steal by Mac Criosta, which prompted a layup for Chmielecki. Mac Criosta helped himself to a pair of free throws at the finish, to wrap up a 71-63 win.
Head coach Faapito revealed what he said to his players as they went into overtime - “We were down by 25 in the semi-final and the same thing I said at half-time I said it in overtime – I said relax, take your time, trust the process, trust our scouting report, what we worked on and it’s going to come to fruition and it did.”
Sean Ryan (7), Max Turski (DNP), Michael Cleary (DNP), Cian Gleeson (17), Ohri Imbush Artola (DNP), Matthew Barry (10), Bryan Morrison (DNP), Philip Kearney (14), Jose Azzopardi (DNP), Dennis Matthews (5), Patryk Rejkowicz (0), Martin Frawley (10)
Denis Daly (0), Franciszek Chmielecki (11), Mascuud Haji (20), Hugo Winston (0), Conor Mac Criosta (5), Gustas Pocevicius (25), Colm Hackett (10).
Meanwhile,
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