Sport

Eagles soar to the top of the table

BASKETBALL: UL EAGLES coach, Mark Keenan, believes his side still have a big improvement to make despite moving to the top of…

Mon Dec 12 2011 - 00:00

BASKETBALL:UL EAGLES coach, Mark Keenan, believes his side still have a big improvement to make despite moving to the top of the Nivea For Men's Superleague Southern Conference after their 76-71 win away to Bord Gais Neptune.

A poor third quarter almost derailed an excellent first half display but the Eagles held on to continue their recent good form.

“We got ourselves in a situation where we could have lost this game and we have to cut the silly mistakes out,” said Keenan.

“We suffered a real lapse in concentration in the third quarter and it almost cost us.

READ MORE

“The pleasing aspect is that we restricted a high -scoring team like Neptune to 71 points.”

Elsewhere in the Southern Conference, UCC Demons became the first team in their division to win at Moycullen this season following their 67-59 success.

The Cork team were missing Kyle Hosford and Niall Murphy but trio Brian O’Neill, Shane Duggan and Daniel O’Mahony were all very impressive as Demons maintain their recent good form.

DCU Saints showed no ill-effects from their National Cup loss last weekend to beat a beleaguered UCD Marian 96-84 on Saturday night.

The win maintains their five -point lead at the top of the Northern Conference, while UCD Marian are now on the back of four straight league defeats and a National Cup exit to UL Eagles.

“The cup defeat was disappointing particularly for a couple of our older guys who might see it as their last chance at claiming a cup title,” said Saints’ coach David Donnelly.

“We still have a huge amount to play for in the league and I am extremely pleased that on the three occasions we have lost this season we have immediately bounced back with a win.”

Killester had seven points to spare over Belfast Star (88-81) to ensure they kept within five points of leaders DCU Saints.

A tight contest was decided in the final quarter when Mariano Gomes stepped up with 11 points to seal a nervy win for the Dubliners.

In the Women’s Superleague, UL further outlined their title credentials with an emphatic 63-43 away to DCU Mercy.

“We have gone to DCU and Montenotte this season and won, which is a great credit to everyone on the team,” said UL coach James Weldon.

Elsewhere, Singleton’s Super Valu Brunell, Team Montenotte Hotel, Waterford Wildcats and Meteors all claimed wins.