@ Loreto Convent Letterkenny, 22 February
Star made their annual winter track over the snowy Glenshane Pass for their last away match of the season, and returned with a satisfactory win over a plucky Blaze team who characteristically gave nothing away easily.
Le John Smye wasted no time reacquainting himself with the team, rattling off a quick 13 points in the first quarter as Star’s pressure defense and willingness to make the extra pass made life difficult for the hosts.
The returning Kamil Kolos also contributed handsomely, snaffling up rebounds and getting in on the scoring act with 5 points including an ‘and 1’ play. But more needs to be done in understanding positional awareness on both ends of the floor, as on several occasions Blaze were able to evade the frontcourt pressure and get all the way to the basket, which was cause for some concern. Nevertheless, with Michael McWilliams anchoring the defense and Eoin Nagle being his usual feisty self, Star ended the first quarter up 21-12.
The second quarter saw Blaze have their best patch of play in the game, as they clawed their way back into the game when Star’s defense went missing for a period. It was a case of trying to put into play certain defensive sets, which the coaching staff acknowledged was a work in progress. Nevertheless, Star soon settled down as a much more focused deadly duo of Peter Henvey & Niall McGinnity got into it, both showing great decision-making in offense as the crowd got a glimpse of their inside & outside game. Ethan Gibson upped the intensity on Blaze’s backcourt players, and Star, through John Moran and Dermot Maguire’s strong running, started to get away on multiple fast-break opportunities that turned the tide back in Star’s favour. Star increased their lead at the half to 38-26.
Both teams really went at it in the third quarter, and the defensive intensity affected the players on both teams. Star again were experimenting with different pressure sets, and you always felt there was another gear there if needed. Their cause was not helped when Eoin Nagle had to come off with a sore ankle, but with Ethan Gibson and John Moran growing in confidence playing the ‘1’ in addition to other spots, this was less a problem than it might have been back at the start of this season. Star kept the scoreboard ticking over, as 8 different players scored in the second half. Peter Henvey, Niall McGinnity and Michael McWilliams’ influence on the game grew as they dominated the boards, and Przemak Kwiecien and Kamil Kolos were rewarded for getting out on the break, Przemak rewarding himself by scoring from the free-throw line, though Kamil needs to get a few more up in practice after an uncharacteristic air-ball! The Royal Mail-sponsored delivery of the game came courtesy of a text-book ‘oop’ from Ethan Gibson to a deserved Michael McWilliams, who had put in a great shift particularly on the defensive end.
All-in-all, a solid performance from everyone across the team, reflected in the fact that the scoring was evenly distributed across the team, John Smye top-scoring on 15 though he was used sparingly in the fourth quarter as he and a few others were getting ready to go back-to-back in the follow-up u18 match. It was nearly impossible to select an MVP, as everyone put in a great shift, but on this occasion the nod was given to Peter Henvey for his all-round contributions on both ends. Next up, Star welcome Queens to St Malachy’s ‘Gaaaden’ this coming Friday, for a game you won’t want to miss.
Star made their annual winter track over the snowy Glenshane Pass for their last away match of the season, and returned with a satisfactory win over a plucky Blaze team who characteristically gave nothing away easily.
Le John Smye wasted no time reacquainting himself with the team, rattling off a quick 13 points in the first quarter as Star’s pressure defense and willingness to make the extra pass made life difficult for the hosts.
The returning Kamil Kolos also contributed handsomely, snaffling up rebounds and getting in on the scoring act with 5 points including an ‘and 1’ play. But more needs to be done in understanding positional awareness on both ends of the floor, as on several occasions Blaze were able to evade the frontcourt pressure and get all the way to the basket, which was cause for some concern. Nevertheless, with Michael McWilliams anchoring the defense and Eoin Nagle being his usual feisty self, Star ended the first quarter up 21-12.
The second quarter saw Blaze have their best patch of play in the game, as they clawed their way back into the game when Star’s defense went missing for a period. It was a case of trying to put into play certain defensive sets, which the coaching staff acknowledged was a work in progress. Nevertheless, Star soon settled down as a much more focused deadly duo of Peter Henvey & Niall McGinnity got into it, both showing great decision-making in offense as the crowd got a glimpse of their inside & outside game. Ethan Gibson upped the intensity on Blaze’s backcourt players, and Star, through John Moran and Dermot Maguire’s strong running, started to get away on multiple fast-break opportunities that turned the tide back in Star’s favour. Star increased their lead at the half to 38-26.
Both teams really went at it in the third quarter, and the defensive intensity affected the players on both teams. Star again were experimenting with different pressure sets, and you always felt there was another gear there if needed. Their cause was not helped when Eoin Nagle had to come off with a sore ankle, but with Ethan Gibson and John Moran growing in confidence playing the ‘1’ in addition to other spots, this was less a problem than it might have been back at the start of this season. Star kept the scoreboard ticking over, as 8 different players scored in the second half. Peter Henvey, Niall McGinnity and Michael McWilliams’ influence on the game grew as they dominated the boards, and Przemak Kwiecien and Kamil Kolos were rewarded for getting out on the break, Przemak rewarding himself by scoring from the free-throw line, though Kamil needs to get a few more up in practice after an uncharacteristic air-ball! The Royal Mail-sponsored delivery of the game came courtesy of a text-book ‘oop’ from Ethan Gibson to a deserved Michael McWilliams, who had put in a great shift particularly on the defensive end.
All-in-all, a solid performance from everyone across the team, reflected in the fact that the scoring was evenly distributed across the team, John Smye top-scoring on 15 though he was used sparingly in the fourth quarter as he and a few others were getting ready to go back-to-back in the follow-up u18 match. It was nearly impossible to select an MVP, as everyone put in a great shift, but on this occasion the nod was given to Peter Henvey for his all-round contributions on both ends. Next up, Star welcome Queens to St Malachy’s ‘Gaaaden’ this coming Friday, for a game you won’t want to miss.
