EJ Sligo All-Stars picked up a crucial 78-77 win over Flexachem KCYMS in a battle between two sides fighting for survival in the Domino's Men's Super League.
Free throws in the final minute from Elijah Faapito and Jordan Hinds put All-Stars up 78-75 with ten seconds left. Killorglin's Jeffery Okeke had three free throws at the end of the game to tie it up, but ultimately, the final free throw bounced in and out to give Sligo a sixth win of the season.
All-Stars took a major step towards safety with two wins this weekend, following up Saturday’s victory over Killorglin with a three-point, 88-85 triumph over Garvey’s Tralee Warriors.
All-Stars trio Elijah Lawrence, Obinna Agu and Jordan Hinds scored 70 of All-Star’s 88 points.
Holding just a two-point cushion with ten seconds to go, Lawrence nailed a free throw to give Sligo the victory. Irshaad Hunte did his best to get Warriors over the line, with a huge 28-point and 17-rebound game.
Sligo join UCC Demons and Limerick Celtics on seven wins, but have played one game extra on the two sides, and have now extended their gap to Neptune at the bottom to two games. Warriors are now 8-9 in seventh place. They hold two games in hand on Marian and Vincent’s, which could see them rise as high as fifth.
Killester survived a late scare against Energywise Ireland Neptune to secure a 105-95 win in overtime to close the gap at the top to Belfast Star to just one game.
A second chance attempt at the rim from Josh Wilson drew Killester level at 88-88 with five seconds to go in normal time to force overtime. A 17-7 overtime period, including seven point from Robert Braswell, who scored 29 for Killester, gave them the victory.
Killester then made it four wins in a row, with a 95-79 triumph over UCD Marian, who suffered two defeats this weekend. Killester’s duo of Josh Wilson and Robert Braswell combined for 43 points in Sunday’s win. Killester led 7-5 early on in the first period and never lost the lead afterwards.
They managed to create as much as a 30-point gap at one stage during the game. Bruce Saintilus continued to lead the way for Marian, following up his 32-point performance against Limerick Celtics with a team-high 19 points.
Killester are now at 14 wins for the season, one short of Belfast Star at the summit of the Domino’s Men’s Super League. Marian’s two losses in this double gameweek gives them a negative 9-10 record for the season, leaving them level with St Vincent’s and one win behind Griffith College Éanna, who have a game in hand on both Marian and Vincent’s as we approach the final four rounds of the regular season.
League leaders Belfast Star suffered a shock defeat with a 96-71 loss against Griffith College Éanna. Star welcomed a new acquisition as Shane Dezonie made his debut following the departure of Shane Bell due to medical reasons.
For Éanna, they had six players in double digits, notably Kristjan Andabaka with a 13-point, 11-rebound double-double. Irish international Rapolas Buivydas finished with 13 points and 11 boards for Star, but they fell to their first loss in eight league games.
Star managed to recover from their defeat against Éanna with an 85-79 victory over St. Vincent’s on Sunday.
Star’s Shane Dezonie announced himself to the Star faithful with an 18-point game in his home debut. A Max Richardson three-pointer with two minutes left in the second quarter put Star up 40-37. The three-point advantage was the lead they would ultimately take with them until the end of the game.
34 points from William Thomas wasn’t enough for Vincent’s to get over the line as they fall to 9-10 for the season, sitting in sixth. One win and one loss in the double gameweek keep Belfast Star at the top of the league at 15-4, but the gap to the sides below them is now just one game.
Vincent’s, after a similar weekend of one victory and one defeat, sit in sixth, level with UCD Marian for fifth place.
Ballincollig kept their hat in the hunt for the top spot with an 82-73 victory over Garvey’s Tralee Warriors in a rematch of the Domino’s MSL National Cup final. It was almost a repeat of the final as the duo of Jossell and Mitchell drove Ballincollig to victory, scoring 45 points between them. Jossell scored 21 whilst Mitchell had 25 with 11 rebounds.
Warriors had control for large portions of the game, leading 40-35 at half-time. Warriors also led 71-68 midway through the final quarter, but late scores from Jossell, Mitchell and Adrian O’Sullivan gave Ballincollig a much-needed victory.
Ballincollig are now 13-5, one game behind Killester in second. The loss for Warriors edges them closer to the sides below them, with Limerick Celtics now just one win away, however Warriors do have games in hand to play before the season is complete.
Limerick Celtics enjoyed a mixed bag of results between Friday and Saturday, losing in the final minute of action to St. Vincent’s 76-73, with Vincent’s William Thomas making a tough shot followed by free-throws to give Vincents the victory. Celtics then followed that up with a 77-70 triumph over UCD Marian on Saturday.
The Celtics trio of AJ Williams, Tony Hauser and Ruairi Cronin combined for 49 points against Marian to get them over the line despite a 32-point game from Marian’s Bruce Saintilus and Zachary Hinton getting a double-double with 13 points and 16 rebounds.
One win and one defeat leaves Celtics level with Demons and Sligo for that last play-off spot in the Domino’s Men’s Super League table with a record of 7-11, with just four games to go.
Utility Trust St Paul's Killarney remain joint-top of the Domino’s Women’s Super League table following an 84-65 triumph over FloMAX Liffey Celtics.
The two sides exchanged leads on six separate occasions, with Celtics last lead being a 31-30 lead with six minutes to go in the second quarter, but a 14-8 swing gave Killarney a 44-38 lead at half-time.
Tara Cousins, Maisie Burnham and Lorraine Scanlon scored 20 points each for St Paul’s in the win, with Burnham and Scanlon also adding 10 and 14 rebounds, respectively. Destinee Bursch and Aine O’Connor combined for 37 points for Celtics in the defeat. The defeat for Celtics leaves them in eighth with a record of 7-8 for the season. For St Paul’s, they are still level with Killester at the summit with a 12-3 record.
Killester also picked up their 12th win of the season on Saturday with an 11-point victory over Trinity Meteors. The 76-65 win is Killester’s fourth straight, but it took until the third period for them to gain proper control against Meteors with free-throws from Ieva Bagdanaviciene and a score inside from Leilani Turner, which put them up 43-39 midway through the third quarter. That would inevitably be the lead that gave Killester the win.
Bagdanavicene led the way for Killester with 19 points as they kept up with St. Paul’s in the Domino’s Women’s Super League, where both sides currently sit on 12-3 records. For Meteors, Hazel Finn and Kylie Horstmeyer scored 15 each in the loss, which is a tough one to take as they now fall a game behind Brunell, who take up the final home play-off place.
SETU Waterford Wildcats went level with Meteors in joint-fifth following a 68-49 win over McEvoy’s Cavan Eagles. Wildcats started the faster of the two sides, racing into a 20-7 lead after a pair of free throws from Irish international Sarah Hickey. Wildcats kept a strong grip on the lead for the remainder of the game after Eagles lost Mazatkan Harris after she fouled out.
Wildcats join Meteors at 8-7 in the table after a 22-point, nine-rebound game from Hickey, and also an 18-point, 14-rebound double-double from Tiarra Brown drove them to the victory. For Eagles, they stay level with FloMAX Liffey Celtics at 7-8, with both sides now level for seventh spot.
UCC Glanmire kept their one-win cushion ahead of fourth-placed Brunell with an 87-56 triumph over Catalyst Fr Mathews. Glanmire built as much as a 39-point lead during the game. Four of Glanmire’s starters finished with double digits in scoring, with Viane Cumber scoring 19, Jewel Watkins adding 16, Claire O’Sullivan getting 13, and Aine McKenna hitting the ten-point mark. For Fr Mathews, Laila Blair kept her scoring form going with 14 points, but it was Stacie Jones leading the way with an 18-point, 13-rebound showing.
The win was third-place Glanmire’s 10th of the season, with them two games behind Killester and St Paul’s, but also one game up on Brunell. Catalyst Fr. Mathews remain winless, at 0-15 at the foot of the table.
Irish international Edel Thornton scored 31 points as Gurranabraher Credit Union Brunell defeated Midlands Park Portlaoise Panthers 82-65. Brailyn Joseph, Ava Walshe and Katie Walshe combined for 40 points for Brunell, along with Thornton’s 31, to ensure Brunell picked up a ninth win of the season.
Lynn Tunnah put Panthers ahead with a tough finish in the third quarter to get a 44-43 lead. However, Brunell ended the third on a 16-5 run, including six points from Thornton in the last four minutes of the quarter.
The win for Brunell has them at 9-6 and has given them a one-win cushion over both Wildcats and Meteors following Meteors’ loss on Saturday. Panthers are now 2-13 for the season after a fifth consecutive defeat.
