UCD Marian 81-70 UL Eagles
UCD Marian withstood a third quarter comeback from UL Eagles to book their place in the Men’s National Cup final on 24 January.
The Dubliners took an early lead with Preston Ross dominating in the post and helping himself to an 8-0 run as Marian led by 13 points after 10 minutes.
UL Eagles found parity in the second quarter as Orlando Parker was replaced by James Brophy and Scott Kinevane was allowed to run at the basket but it wasn’t until the third quarter that the game became a true contest.
Neil Campbell led by example in converting the open shots and taking advantage of opportunities from the free throw line to bring the gap down to a single basket.
UCD Marian’s Kevin Foley stepped up to maintain his sides advantage and finish with a final tally of 23 points and Paul Kelleher’s now-or-never time out in the last five minutes failed to produce the desired result.
UCD Marian came out on top from some ‘dive-on-glass’ basketball and when Preston Ross landed the first dunk of the game with 90 seconds remaining, the result was beyond doubt.
UCD Marian’s Conor Meany was relieved at the final whistle.
“It was unusual for us to come into the game with the favourites tag,” he said. “We played well in the first half but took our foot off the gas and they started making shots. UL Eagles gave us a great game but unfortunalely we pulled it out.“
C&S UCC Demons 95-70 Travelodge Swords Thunder
C&S UCC Demons put on a stunning display of outside shooting to see off Travelodge Swords Thunder in their semi-final.
Ciaran O’Sullivan and Colin O’Reilly combined to hit five consecutive three-pointers without reply in the third quarter as the home side overturned a 12 point deficit to win out 95-70.
Swords had the brighter start through the in-form Michael Goj and some efficient inside work from Juan Torres. With Isaac Westbrooks at the tiller, the visitors led 30-20 after 10 minutes.
As Thunder’s momentum faltered in the second quarter, Demons reverted to type and pushed the tempo to find the open shooter with lethal effect. They regained parity within five minutes and Kyle Hosford found route to the basket to give them a lead they’d never relinquish. A 46-38 half time score line allowed them to tee up the shooting masterclass after the break.
Ciaran O’Sullivan spoke afterward about what it’s like to be in the zone. “You get there a couple of times a year if you’re lucky,” said the Cork man.
“Tonight I felt like anything I threw up was going to go in. I got the confidence and I got the room. Kyle Hosford and Adrian did a good job of pushing the tempo and that helped us get the open looks.”
