Rising Stars 37 – Newry Fliers 63
Newry Fliers U16 Boys continued their winning streak on Sunday with 3 wins out of 3 against new Belfast team Rising Stars.
Rising Stars won the tip and took control of the opening minutes of the game, moving the ball at a fast and frantic pace. This urgency rubbed off onto the Fliers who also started the game in a hectic manner, with both teams causing turnovers and no points being scored in the opening 4 minutes. Finally the scoring was opened by Rising Stars’ P. Nunez, who quickly got 5 points on the board. Matthew Fegan rebounded and put up a shot for the Fliers’ first 2 points. These first points on the board settled the Fliers with Point Guard Kamil McCabe slowing the pace of the game and getting the ball to the inside players. Strong drives to the basket from Captain Aaron Miller brought the Fliers back in the game, ending the quarter with a one point lead.
With such a narrow lead, the fresh set of players knew they would have to up the ante if they were to stay in this game. Luckily for the Fliers, an error by Rising Stars gave the Fliers an extra 2 points with the home team going to the wrong basket in the opening seconds. This points boost for the Fliers was followed up with solid inside work from post player Aaron O’Reilly who did well to look for the ball around the quay before converting it to points under the basket. More points were added by Garrett Campbell whose, now trademark, strong drives through several defenders continued to wow. Despite the surge in points for the Fliers, Rising Stars were by no means out of the game. P. Sevilla kept the home team in the game, with 6 points in a row and keeping the game tight, with the Fliers leading by just 7 points at the end of the half, 18-25.
With such a tight game on their hands, the Fliers went into the second half all guns blazing with their strongest combination of players. Match MVP Eoin McStay opened scoring for the Fliers in the second half in the face of constant pressure from the Rising Stars defence. McStay continued to work hard under the basket rebounding alongside fellow post player O’Reilly who continued to add points.
As the Fliers started to edge into the lead, Rising Stars retaliated by adding pressure and pressing the ball in the front court. This press made it more difficult for the Fliers to get the ball up the court but McCabe and Miller worked well together to pass their way out of trouble. With Rising Stars pressing for the remainder of the game, it was not long before the Fliers spotted the weakness in the press with Miller making some long distance passes to Campbell who finished with a layup to add more points.
However, Rising Stars were far from finished despite the Fliers edging away. D. Stewart continued to be a threat against the Fliers, not only adding several 3 pointers in the game but also cutting into gaps of the Fliers’ zone. The Fliers did well to close Stewart down as much as possible at the 3 point line, forcing him to drive to the basket, where he was less successful. Strong rebounding here from Paul Cunningham and Michael Clarke in the 4th quarter stopped Rising Stars from converting points under the basket and lead to some fast breaks for the Fliers. With Rising Stars in foul trouble and continuing to foul, the Fliers put an end to any comeback from Rising Star, adding 13 points from the free throw line and ending the game with a triumphant 37-63 win. Newry Fliers: A.Miller (C) 10, E.McStay (MVP) 6, A.O’Reilly 26, G.Campbell 12, K.McCabe 4, R.O’Hanlon 3, P.Cunningham, M.Clarke, G.Black, L.Clarke, M.Fegan
