@ St MALACHY’S ‘GAAADEN’ - Fri 27 Feb
Star got the weekend off to a great start with a solid display against Queens, coming out on top 66-46 in a well-contested game against their good rivals.
Eoin Nagle, who was touch-and-go during the week having sprained his ankle in the game vs Blaze, typically led his team from the get-go, and Star’s opening 5 quickly got into a nice groove, racing off to an 8-2 start in the first few minutes.
Michael McWilliams, who is blossoming into a leader particularly on the defensive end, and his fellow paint-protector Kamil Kolos, dominated the airways, allowing John Smye and Ethan Gibson to play pressure-ball, and this resulted in successive turnovers and easy scores as Star took command. However, Queens coach Gavin Garland marshaled his troops, and behind the ever-steady Matthew Rooney, Queens came back into the game. Star finished the quarter on a nice run though, as John Smye connected on his first ‘trey’- a sign of things to come. Star up 20-6 at the short horn.
The second quarter unit picked up the baton, this time with ‘J Mo’ on point, Daniel Hackett and Dermot Maguire on the wings, and the deadly duo Henvey & McGinnity playing inside. This quarter contained the Subway ‘Play of the Game’ – an offensive rebound from Peter Henvey going in where he had no right to, and skied over everybody including his team-mate Niall McGinnity to claim the board, to the gasps of everyone watching (including the ref!). Star kept the scoreboard ticking over, John Moran again making some sweet plays and not settling for the long-distance low-percentage bomb, and Daniel Hackett connecting on a nice mid-range J. Then CJ Fulton made a typical valuable contribution as he stepped comfortably up to this level, capping his performance with a corner-swish from a designed end-line play. But the score of the quarter was reserved for the end, a sweet shot-fake & one-bounce dribble from Dermott Maguire, creating separation from his defender before tickling the twine as the buzzaa sounded. Star led at the half 35-14.
But Queens fought back again, characteristically behind the play of Matthew Rooney and Ryan Murtagh, and helped by a big contribution from Daniel Leggett on the boards, and the 3rd quarter was ding-dong, both teams going at it with all they had. Star’s bigs were guilty of a lapse in concentration, and paid the penalty for not boxing out as Queens started to get inside for offensive put-backs. It took the deadly shooting of Le John Smye to keep momentum going for Star, as he exploded for 16 of Star’s 19 points of the quarter, on his way to leading everyone with a 21 point haul for the game. What was most pleasing was that he mixed it up nicely, showing great decision-making when pulling up from outside, as well as going strong to the basket.
Star kept the up-tempo pace right through the 4th quarter, and needed to keep their concentration level high to thwart a concerted Queens comeback. They eventually ran out winners on a score-line of 66-46. All in all, a solid performance from the team, who stand on the verge of an unbeaten league campaign with one to go. Whilst there were some patches of play that were very pleasing on the eye, there were also times where the team was guilty of sloppy play and silly errors, and against good teams like Queens they were deservedly punished. But this team is edging closer and closer to a breakout performance from start to finish, and it will be great for all to see when this game comes round – hopefully sooner rather than later.
Star got the weekend off to a great start with a solid display against Queens, coming out on top 66-46 in a well-contested game against their good rivals.
Eoin Nagle, who was touch-and-go during the week having sprained his ankle in the game vs Blaze, typically led his team from the get-go, and Star’s opening 5 quickly got into a nice groove, racing off to an 8-2 start in the first few minutes.
Michael McWilliams, who is blossoming into a leader particularly on the defensive end, and his fellow paint-protector Kamil Kolos, dominated the airways, allowing John Smye and Ethan Gibson to play pressure-ball, and this resulted in successive turnovers and easy scores as Star took command. However, Queens coach Gavin Garland marshaled his troops, and behind the ever-steady Matthew Rooney, Queens came back into the game. Star finished the quarter on a nice run though, as John Smye connected on his first ‘trey’- a sign of things to come. Star up 20-6 at the short horn.
The second quarter unit picked up the baton, this time with ‘J Mo’ on point, Daniel Hackett and Dermot Maguire on the wings, and the deadly duo Henvey & McGinnity playing inside. This quarter contained the Subway ‘Play of the Game’ – an offensive rebound from Peter Henvey going in where he had no right to, and skied over everybody including his team-mate Niall McGinnity to claim the board, to the gasps of everyone watching (including the ref!). Star kept the scoreboard ticking over, John Moran again making some sweet plays and not settling for the long-distance low-percentage bomb, and Daniel Hackett connecting on a nice mid-range J. Then CJ Fulton made a typical valuable contribution as he stepped comfortably up to this level, capping his performance with a corner-swish from a designed end-line play. But the score of the quarter was reserved for the end, a sweet shot-fake & one-bounce dribble from Dermott Maguire, creating separation from his defender before tickling the twine as the buzzaa sounded. Star led at the half 35-14.
But Queens fought back again, characteristically behind the play of Matthew Rooney and Ryan Murtagh, and helped by a big contribution from Daniel Leggett on the boards, and the 3rd quarter was ding-dong, both teams going at it with all they had. Star’s bigs were guilty of a lapse in concentration, and paid the penalty for not boxing out as Queens started to get inside for offensive put-backs. It took the deadly shooting of Le John Smye to keep momentum going for Star, as he exploded for 16 of Star’s 19 points of the quarter, on his way to leading everyone with a 21 point haul for the game. What was most pleasing was that he mixed it up nicely, showing great decision-making when pulling up from outside, as well as going strong to the basket.
Star kept the up-tempo pace right through the 4th quarter, and needed to keep their concentration level high to thwart a concerted Queens comeback. They eventually ran out winners on a score-line of 66-46. All in all, a solid performance from the team, who stand on the verge of an unbeaten league campaign with one to go. Whilst there were some patches of play that were very pleasing on the eye, there were also times where the team was guilty of sloppy play and silly errors, and against good teams like Queens they were deservedly punished. But this team is edging closer and closer to a breakout performance from start to finish, and it will be great for all to see when this game comes round – hopefully sooner rather than later.
