BASKETBALL:UCD MARIAN will make history on Sunday when they face 11890 Killester in the final of the Men's SuperLeague National Cup and will carry the tag of "underdogs" against the current giants of Irish basketball.
UCD Marian booked their place after negotiating a tricky semi-final clash against Ulster Elks and will require an improved display if they are to see off a fierce challenge in the shape of Killester.
Their head coach Fran Ryan is hoping the manner of their comeback against Ulster Elks will stand to them on Sunday. The students had to overturn a 20-7 first-quarter deficit to Elks before a much improved second-half display saw them progress.
“We took a lot out of that game,” said Fran Ryan. “We under-performed in the first half against Elks. Maybe the pressure of being favourites got to us. However we had the pressure of coming from 10 points down in the second half and we did that under enormous pressure. The lads learned a lot about what they are capable of that day.”
11890 Killester may be overwhelming favourites but they will be looking for an improvement in their recent performances. Despite seeing off UL Eagles in the semi-final, they have suffered surprise losses in the league recently to DCU Saints and Belfast Star.
Their recent league encounter saw them edge a tight affair away to Bord Gáis Neptune by a solitary point.
“We didn’t play as well as we can against Neptune, that’s for sure,” said Killester head coach Mark Keenan. “It was a scrappy game, and we didn’t do well offensively. It was good to get that game out of the way though. Now we just want to focus on what’s ahead of us on Sunday.”
In the women’s final, cup holders DCU Mercy face Team Montenotte Hotel Cork in a repeat of last season’s thrilling decider.
On that occasion, Mercy claimed their first cup success courtesy of a 13-point win but the Cork side atoned for the defeat when they beat their rivals in March to claim the league title.
Montenotte’s preparations haven’t been helped by injury concerns to influential trio Marie Breen, Áine McKenna and Gráinne Dwyer but the Cork club are hopeful all three could recover in time for the trip to Dublin. The Cork giants have enjoyed a perfect start to the season, recording nine out of nine league and cup wins.
Montenotte head coach Mark Scannell believes Sunday’s final “will be a great game between two very good teams. I think previous encounters suggest this will hopefully be another classic,” he said.
DCU coach Mark Ingle agrees with that assessment. “I think it will be a really good game of basketball. We know that they will be determined to win the cup back, but we just have to make sure we are prepared.” he said. “It was a fantastic moment for the club last year but to retain the trophy would be special,” he added.
NATIONAL CUP FINALS: Today: Under-18 Women’s Final; 6.30pm; Claregalway (Galway) V AOS Security Glanmire (Cork); Under-18 Men’s Final; 8.30pm; Templeogue (Dublin) V Tolka Rovers (Dublin). Saturday: Under-20 Women’s Final; 12pm; Tralee Imperials (Kerry) V Waterford Wildcats (Waterford); Under-20 Men’s Final; 2.0; UCC Demons (Cork) V Maree (Galway); Senior Women’s Cup Final; 6pm; Ulster Rockets (Belfast) V UL (Limerick); Senior Men’s Cup Final; 8pm; Team Garvey’s St. Mary’s (Kerry) V CHM Ballon (Dublin). Sunday: Women’s SuperLeague Final; 1pm; Team Montenotte Hotel Cork (Cork) V DCU Mercy (Dublin). Men’s SuperLeague Final; 3.15; 11890 Killester (Dublin) V UCD Marian (Dublin).
