Newry Fliers 42 Rising Stars 29
Newry Fliers U16 Boys welcomed BNI league newcomers, Belfast Rising Stars, to their home court on Saturday. Having played this tough side once already this season, the Fliers knew they would have to work hard if they were to maintain their unbeaten record.
From the off, the Fliers looked sharp on offence with Guards Aaron Miller and Kamil McCabe working well together to move the ball and drive to the basket for points.At the other end of the court, the Fliers zone defence looked strong and was effective in keeping the Stars from shining. Ross O’Hanlon worked hard to keep Stars’ D. Stewart from getting anywhere near the basket, forcing him to attempt outside shots. With this solid work from O’Hanlon, Fliers’ Michael Clarke and Eoin McStay were able to clean up on rebounds, leading to fast break opportunities for the Fliers and taking them into a strong lead at the end of the quarter, 10-1.
A fresh set of legs in the second quarter allowed the Fliers to continue their magic on offence. Garrett Campbell continued his strong offensive streak with drives to the basket for the Fliers. With the encouragement from Fliers’ Assistant Coach Paul Crawley, Campbell drove hard, pulling in the Stars’ defenders and then dishing the ball off to open man Paul Cunningham, who added 4 points to the tally. Post Player Aaron O’Reilly struggled on offence in his opening quarter, with missed attempts under the basket, causing O’Reilly to drop his head instead of fighting for the rebounds. Despite this, the Fliers still managed to get 12 points in the quarter.
The Rising Stars were by no means down and out as they responded to the Fliers. Sevilla opened scoring for the Stars with a 3 point basket, lifting momentum for the away camp and bringing on a succession of scoring as the Fliers struggled to keep their defensive zone solid, trailing behind the Fliers at the end of the half, 22-10.
Having had a strong offensive first half, the Fliers went into the third quarter with a positive attitude, knowing that if they kept up the effort they would be rewarded. On the offence, Fliers’ Campbell and McCabe continued to dominate with drives to the basket. Captain Miller put up some good outside shots but was just unlucky as they came off the rim of the basket. Luckily, post player O’Reilly’s head was back in the game and he did well to rebound under the basket and convert the rebounds to points.
Despite this surge in points for the Fliers, this quarter was by no means easy for them, as the Stars did well to place the Fliers under pressure, leading to several turnovers. The quick hands of the Rising Stars allowed them to fast break to the basket for easy points and free throws. However this was not enough as the Rising Stars now trailed by 17 points going into the final quarter, with the Fliers leading 32-15.
With the Fliers in such a comfortable position heading into the final eight minutes, they made their biggest mistake of the season so far- thinking the game was won.
The Fliers’ defence was slack and sloppy, leading them into foul trouble and easy baskets for the Stars. Another quick 3 pointer from Sevilla lifted the away side and, with the cheer from their supporters, willed the Rising Stars on. With this momentous boost, the Rising Stars closed the gap to 6 points and what had been a comfortable game for the Fliers was quickly turning into a nightmare.
A quick change of players by Fliers’ Coach Lisa O’Keeffe, allowed the Newry boys to once again add a few points to their tally, courtesy of Campbell and O’Reilly. Even with the points boost, the Fliers continued to struggle as the Rising Stars had nothing to lose by hustling and working hard to put the Fliers under pressure.
After a quick timeout talk for the Fliers, Captain Aaron Miller rose to the challenge and took charge of his team. Miller knew that with only two minutes left on the clock, the Rising Stars were going to drive hard at the Fliers, hoping to draw fouls and win free throw points.
Miller slowed the game for the Fliers, taking charge at the top of the key, despite the pressure form the away side. By wasting the 24 second clock down, Miller slowly took away any opportunity for the Rising Stars to close the gap, before adding a quick pass into the basket to take the Fliers back into a lead and earning the Captain MVP.
Despite this scare, the Fliers managed to hold off the Rising Stars to win the game 42-29, keeping them at the top of the league table. With only two games to go before the semi-finals, the Fliers must use this game as a wakeup call if they hope to keep their title campaign alight.
Newry Fliers: A.Miller (C)(MVP) 4, A.O’Reilly 13, G.Campbell 13, K.McCabe 6, P.Cunningham 4, E.McStay 2, R.O’Hanlon, M.Clarke, G.Black, B.Crozier, L.Clarke, M.Fegan
