Belfast Star secured second spot in the Nivea For Men’s SuperLeague Northern Conference, while Neptune maintained their hopes of finishing second in the Southern Conference with a comfortable win at home to Hoops in the latest round of fixtures.
Ulster Elks’ hopes of reaching the Play-Off’s took a major blow away to Moycullen and UCC Demons emerged from their double header with DCU Saints and UCD/Marian with maximum points.
Belfast Star can look forward to home advantage in the quarter final of the play-offs after a superb 101-90 win away to Southern Conference champions UL Eagles.
The win confirmed a 10th success of the season for Danny Fulton’s side with their US recruit Kevin Ratzsch, averaging 31 points per game this season, chipping in with another marvellous display.
’I was delighted with the way we bounced back in the game after trailing at one stage by 13 points,’ said Star Head Coach Danny Fulton. ‘It was a great game so close to the play-offs and hopefully it should stand to us.
‘Kevin (Ratzsch) was outstanding again,’ he added. ‘Scottie (Summersgill) played well, while Stephen Dawson was also put in a good performance.’
Neptune’s preparations for the play-offs were boosted after seeing off Hoops courtesy of an 86-43 scoreline.
Carlton Aaron put in another fine scoring performance but his 30 points was not enough to prevent the Dubliners from their 12th defeat of the season.
‘It was a scrappy game with a lot of missed lay-ups and free throws but we needed this win to keep us in the shake up for the second spot,’ said Neptune Head Coach Pat Price.
‘One of the main factors for this win was our pressure defence which forced Hoops into taking the more difficult options,’ added Price. ‘Our bench made a huge contribution with Michael McGinn scoring 22 points from the bench.
Moycullen earned their first win in seven games with a 78-71 win at home to high flying Ulster Elks.
A run of three consecutive wins last weekend left the Elks dreaming of a possible last ditch spurt towards the play-offs.
However, Puff Summers, shining in place of Nathaniel Fritsch who departed the club recently, hit 27 points to help the Westerners to a much needed fourth win of the campaign.
UCC Demons' fight for second place took a major step forward this weekend with wins over DCU Saints and UCD/Marian respectively.
On Sunday, Demons proved too strong with Joshua Johnson maintaining the club’s play-offs push with 24 points against a UCD/Marian side who fought back from a 20 point deficit at the break.
A day earlier, UCC Demons emerged from their difficult trip to DCU with an 84-81 win.
Johnson kept up his recent good form to add another 21 points to his overall scoring tally, while Emmet Donnelly was best for the Saints on 24 points.
‘It has been a great team effort,’ said Demons Head Coach Luke D’Alessio. ‘There is a lot of heart and character in this Demons side and these two wins keep us well in contention for second place.’
Meanwhile, in the IrishSport.TV Women’s SuperLeague, DCU Mercy emerged from their difficult trip to UL with a win, while Team Montenotte Hotel Cork proved too strong for Killester.
On Sunday, Sligo finally got that first win of the season after a terrific performance away to Meteors.
Tolka Rovers secured their third win of the season at the expense of Bausch & Lomb Waterford Wildcats.
DCU Mercy pulled off a hat trick of wins over UL on Saturday night with their 78-70 success adding to wins over the Limerick side in the cup and league earlier in the season.
National Cup MVP Lindsey Peat hit 21 points in a game which DCU trailed by four points at the interval.
UL shot the lights out in the first half, with April Cahalane and Rachel Vanderwal on form. Mercy struggled under the boards in the first half but responded in the second half with the fouth quarter being their best of the night.
‘It was a great game in terms of preparing for the play-offs,’ said Mercy Head Coach Mark Ingle. ‘It's proving to be an exciting end to the season and a game like this can only be good for us as we get ready for the all important closing weeks of the season.’
Niamh Dwyer produced another inspirational performance as Team Montenotte Hotel Cork beat Killester by 22 points (62-40) on Saturday.
The win rarely looked in jeopardy with the current leaders holding a handsome 38-17 lead at the break.
‘It was a great team performance,’ said Montenotte Head Coach Mark Scannell. ‘We are delighted with the win particularly with Marie Breen out through injury and Donna having to bow out of the game early with a knock.
‘Our recent close games have helped focus the team and we can now begin preparing for next weekend’s game against UL.’
Tolka Rovers Head Coach, Emmet Geogeghan, was in buoyant mood after watching his team overturn a 38-25 deficit at the break to beat Bausch & Lomb Waterford Wildcats 61-57.
‘I couldn't be prouder of the way the team responded,’ said Geogeghan. ‘It really was a team effort but we had great leaders in Jenny Coady and Jolie Niland. I am just so proud and we have two games left to really finish the season on a high note.’
On Sunday, Sligo All Stars ended their wait for their first win of the season with an impressive 75-70 win away to Meteors.
Terry Kennedy’s have been threatening to end their losing streak in recent weeks but commanding performances from the likes of Aoife McDermott, Lorraine Dolan and Karen Johnston ensured that wait ended this weekend.
‘It has been a tough season but we are delighted to get the first win,’ said Sligo Head Coach Terry Kennedy.
‘It has been coming, we were unlucky to lose to Tolka and we have been close in a lot of our games. We made big shots when we needed to and it’s a great result against a very difficult Meteors side.’
