Men’s Basketball

by Enda Walshe

The biggest game of the season so far takes place this Saturday night , with the Killarney Sports and Leisure Centre playing host to the clash of the Northern Conference leaders Dublin Lions and the joint leaders of the Southern Conference Utility Trust St Pauls Lakers.

That Luke O’Hea’s side are in that position is both a compliment to the team and coach. Having lost their opening two fixtures they have embarked on a 9-2 run which has catapulted them up the table. The player deserves huge credit for their level of performance as does the coach as he has engineered some great results, particularly on the road. But now the hard work really starts.

That begins with the visit of the marauding Lions from the capital who themselves have been on a massive run. They have gone seven out of seven in recent months with notable wins over the Titans and Portlaoise Panthers.

Their latest win over Malahide showed everything you need to know about their prowess. Russell Marr, the 6 ft 3 guard has made a name for himself as a prolific scorer and durable defender. This is best highlighted by his 34 point and 5 steal showing in that Dublin Derby and he will need serious defending. Liam Osinuga has really settled into the team since joining in 2021 while Aran Lee has averaged 13 points in his 12 games to date.

Tiago Pereira has previous experience of the league with the Drogheda Wolves and his season high of 21 points against no lesser team than Ulster University mark him out as one to watch. Ignacio Folgueiras has had limited minutes in recent weeks for the Lions but the former Limerick Eagle can be devastating on his day. Tiernan Howe, Harvey Killeen , Neil Kavanagh and Mo Sabic all help form what is a deep squad.

The Lakers last tasted defeat back in mid-November against National Cup finalists Limerick Sport Eagles and their momentum has been generated by a trio of wins over the Galway clubs, namely Maree, Titans and Moycullen, a derby win over the Cougars and fine away wins over Moy Tolka Rovers and Carrick Cruisers. That run has helped Steve Kelly be crowned December Player of the Month , with the same player not far off consideration for the November gong. Eoin Carrolls scoring averages are creeping up but it's his rebounding that has been a real feature for the team. He is the only homegrown player in the top ten stats in that department and is closely followed in seventh place by team mate Sam Grant. The battle under the boards was pivotal to the Titans wins and will be equally so here. Mark Sheehan and Jack O Sullivan are now regularly shooting in the mid-teens , a stat that must be maintained to challenge for honours while the squad is boosted by the return of Pablo Murcia to training. Marko Bencic will be available for the game but the squad will be without Rui Sariava. Oisin Spring always brings the hustle with him but has also weighed in with important scoring interventions also while Darragh O Callaghan has shown his importance to the squad.

The Lakers won't travel outside the confines of the town again until the 21st February with their sole away game being the Killarney Derby on Thursday February 12th. If you gave them this position at the onset of the season they would have taken your hand off. Now is the time to push it on. Tip-off is at 7.30pm.

Remaining Fixtures

Dublin Lions (H) Saturday January 24 7.30pm
Portlaoise Panthers (H) Saturday January 31 7.30pm
Tipp Talons (H) Monday February 3pm
Team North West (H) Saturday February 7 7.30pm
Killarney Cougars (A) Thursday February 12 8pm
Limerick Sport Eagles (H) Saturday February 14 7.30pm
Templeogue (A) Saturday February 21 7.30pm
Drogheda Wolves (H) Saturday March 7 7.30pm
Maree (A) Saturday March 14 7pm