Newry FliersU16 Boys welcomed Andersonstown Tigers to their home court on Saturday in a bid to win their fourth game out of four.
Having lost the tip, the Fliers fell quickly back into their zone defence which looked strong and proved difficult for the Tigers to beat. Whilst the Tigers managed to put up plenty of outside shots, they were unable to convert them into points and, with Michael Clarke and Eoin McStay working hard to get the rebounds, the Tigers struggled.
With Fliers’ point guard Kamil McCabe out of action, season newcomer Ben Crozier took charge at the top of the key. Crozier did well to work the ball well around the floor, making the Tigers work hard on defence. But the Fliers struggled to get the ball inside. Luckily for the Fliers, Captain Aaron Miller was on the floor to take control and drive hard to the basket time after time for points and free throws to give the Fliers a 10 point lead at the end of the quarter, 12 – 2.
The second quarter started well for the Fliers who took possession of the ball. A quick pass to Garrett Campbell opened scoring for the Fliers. Campbell proved to be a strong asset to the squad with several fast breaks and drives to the basket, racking up a personal best with 17 points and earning game MVP.
Whilst the Fliers continued to soar on offence, their defence looked slack. The Fliers lacked any energy and the Tigers took advantage of this with plenty of opportunities under the basket. Unfortunately for the Tigers their hard work was not paying off as their shots were not falling and the Fliers maintained their lead, ending the half 27 – 8. Despite the talk at half time to get the boys to lift their energy, the Fliers continued to disappoint in the second half and the Tigers punished them for this. Whilst the Tigers had been down by 19 points at the half, their desire to win helped them to take the game back to a much closer 8 point gap. With such a narrow lead, the Fliers’ coach had to change tactics with the return of Campbell, Miller and post player Aaron O’Reilly to the floor. O’Reilly, who had been a big advantage in the previous game, struggled against the Tigers’ strong defence. This showed as O’Reilly’s head dropped and he fouled the Tigers’ shooters, who then added points from the free throw line. Cue Miller and Campbell who worked hard on offence to add some scores for the home side. The fourth quarter showed an all-round improvement in the Fliers’ game as a strong Newry squad hit the floor to put an end to the Tigers comeback. Ross O’Hanlon did well on defence to hustle at the top of the key, putting pressure on the ball and forcing turnovers, without adding any more fouls to his personal tally. With the defence improving, the Fliers started to look like a stronger team again and worked well together to get the ball inside to O’Reilly who finally found his stride. Fliers’ Captain Miller finished the game with an 8 point streak of turnovers for fast breaks to the basket, ending the game with a 50 – 31 win. Despite a fourth win, this was a disappointing game for the Fliers who were not on form and they will need to pull out all the stops if they are to maintain their unbeaten record against the strong Queens club in two weeks time. Newry Fliers: A.Miller (C) 17, G.Campbell (MVP) 17, A.O’Reilly 11, E.McStay 3, R. O’Hanlon 2, B.Crozier, C.Lewis, M.Clarke, L.Clarke, G.Black, M.Fegan
