On Saturday, UL Eagles face a tricky clash away to Bord Gais Neptune in the Nivea For Men’s SuperLeague, while Moycullen welcome Ulster Elks to the Kingfisher in NUIG.
High flying UCD Marian are set for an all capital clash with DCU Saints on Sunday and Belfast Star are set for a home tie with UCC Demons.
UL Eagles’ 100 per cent record will be seriously tested away to Bord Gais Neptune this weekend.
Neptune are on the back of three successive defeats but the arrival of Michael Bonaparte is expected to breathe new life into their season.
Bonaparte arrived as cover for the injured Robinson Louisme and made an immediate impact with 39 points in their defeat to his former club 11890 Killester.
‘We know it will be a different game than when we played them two weeks ago with Bonaparte now joining them but hopefully we have progressed as well,’ said Eagles’ Welsh international Matt Hall.
‘The team is back to full strength and looking to improve in the coming weeks. Neptune on Saturday will be a good yard stick for us to see how far we have come.’
Neptune have endured a tough couple of weeks and their head coach Pat Price believes his side must pay more attention to the defensive side of the game.
‘In order to stay competitive in the match, we will need complete focus and urgency from the tip-off,’ said Price. ‘We will begin to win more basketball games when we collectively decide that defence is a priority.’
UCD Marian have a number of injury worries ahead of their all capital clash with old rivals DCU Saints.
The game represents one of the oldest rivalries in Irish basketball with the first game between the two sides taking place in 1971.
UCD Marian have injury worries over Cathal Finn, who is struggling with a hamstring problem, while Barry Glover and Conor Meany are also doubts.
‘Saints will be possibly our toughest opponents to date when one considers it is in their home court,’ said UCD head coach Fran Ryan.
‘Their current win/loss record is misleading considering they have last year’s coach of the season in Vinny O’Keefe and one of the best players in the league in Emmet Donnelly.
‘They have played the three toughest games of their season and all away from home so no one can be sure how good they are this year.’
DCU Saints boss Vinny O’Keefe is hopeful his side can arrest their losing streak. ‘The performances so far have not been as good as we would expect,’ he said.
‘We haven’t started well at all, but with a cross city rivalry like Marian, it’s always tough. The games are usually close, so we are hoping we can get a good performance and give a good account of ourselves,’ O’Keefe added.
A unique element is the meeting of the Glover brothers on opposite teams who will possibly be marking each other; Barry Glover (UCD Marian) and Pat Glover (DCU Saints).
Moycullen will await a late fitness test before deciding on whether Eoghan Maxwell will be available for their clash at home to Ulster Elks.
‘We have to keep our concentration for the whole game,’ said Moycullen’s Cian Nihill, who is averaging 18.2 points per game this season.
‘We had a good first half against UL and a good second half against UCD, unfortunately they were both for nothing because we didn't play for the entire 40 minutes and ended up getting blown out in both games.’
Ulster Elks are at full strength and their head coach Deirdre Brennan is expecting a difficult test despite Moycullen’s start to the season.
‘We expect Moycullen to be very hungry for that first win and we know they are incredibly tough opposition in their home gym,’ said Brennan. ‘We need to match their ability to play team basketball and be prepared to exploit any mistakes they may make.’
Belfast Star are set to receive a huge boost ahead of their home tie with UCC Demons with the news that the Clayton Longmire saga may finally be coming to an end.
The American’s arrival in Belfast has been held up due to work permit delays but he is likely to make his first appearance this weekend.
However, Scott Summersgill is definitely ruled out, while Michael McKillop is also a doubt. ‘We played UCC Demons four times last year and lost every time,’ said Star head coach Danny Fulton. ‘It would be nice to get our first league win against them.’
UCC Demons will be bidding for their fourth win of the season but head coach Paul Kelleher believes Star can hurt his side.
‘Star will change up their defences so we will have to be ready for that as well as their full court press from time to time while they are constantly active on the offensive end,’ said Kelleher.
‘We will need to continue building on our defense as we did in the first half last week and execute with patience on the offensive end if we are to maintain our good scoring form so far.
'We will need to use Marcus Van correctly on this game and our perimeter will have to recognize correct decisions and hopefully we will have a chance to get the right result.’
Meanwhile, in the IrishSport.TV Women’s SuperLeague, reigning champions Team Montenotte Hotel Cork entertain Black Forge Oblate Dynamos, while Meteors and Waterford Wildcats entertain host DCU Mercy and 11890 Killester respectively.
Team Montenotte Hotel Cork disposed of 11890 Killester in their first outing but head coach Mark Scannell is expecting a tougher test against Black Forge Oblate Dynamos.
‘With all due respect to Killester, they had a very inexperienced side out on the day. Drimnagh are a team that is used to winning and they have a good pedigree. They are an experienced, physical side. They will be a big test for us, but they will be a good test,’ said Scannell.
Last season’s National Cup champions DCU Mercy get their season up and running away to Meteors on Sunday.
DCU have added height and speed to an already strong roster. Emma Dyer at 6’4” is sure to gather her share of rebounds and points inside the key this season. Dyer is joined by Catriona Foley, a player the coach describes as, ‘one of the best under-20’s in the country.’
‘Emma will give us a lot of rebounds and Caitriona will give us more speed and athleticism around the court,’ Ingle said.
