Belfast beckons for the Maigh Cuilinn Super League basketballers this weekend as they head north for a clash with a Belfast Star team that last weekend lost its four-game winning streak to table-toppers DBS Eanna in Dublin.
Maigh Cuilinn enter the game on the back of one of their best performances of the season, having defeated UCD Marian in Galway on December 30 by a comfortable 18 points.
That win for the men from Conemara was undoubtedly built on a rock solid defensive effort that will be thoroughly tested on Saturday against Belfast Star that averages just shy of 80 points per game. In Shon Briggs from the USA, Star has found a perfect signing this season to complement the diverse guard skills of the long-serving Quinn twins, Conor and Aidan.
Briggs is averaging 20 points per game and is referred to in the local Belfast paper’s as the team’s "enforcer", which is a nod to his commanding size and uncompromising style of play around the basket. One thing is for sure, the battle between Briggs and Maigh Cuilinn’s Grant Olsson in the paint will not be one for the faint hearted.
Star’s success this year - they sit one game off the top of the Super League table on a record of nine wins and two losses - stems from their excellent spread of scoring, and the Quinn twins and Briggs are well assisted by the English trio of Max Richardson, Max Cooper and Jonathan James, who combined, are netting 35 points per game.
Throw in the evergreen sharp shooter Conor Johnston, and some experienced local hands such as Liam Pettigrew and Paddy McGaharan, and it is not difficult to see why Star are challenging once again for the top prize.
Maigh Cuilinn, however, have a respectable record north of the border, and while they will be significant underdogs in any betting man’s books, they will travel with a quiet confidence after a promising end to 2022 that saw them pick up two wins and a narrow loss to co-league leaders DBS Eanna away from home.
The return of James Connaire is also a welcome boost as the Maigh Cuilinn man returned to action after a lengthy injury by earning some minutes against UCD Marian in the most recent home game.
While Maigh Cuilinn await the return as yet of the influential James Loughnane and James Lyons, they are enjoying a superb run of play from their two import players in USA born Grant Olsson (averaging 21 points per game ) and Spanish native Mateo Liberatore (averaging nine points per game ).
A key will be whether they can slow down the potent Belfast Star attack. If it gets up and running, it is good enough to shred any team, particularly in the home confines of their De La Salle Hall in Belfast.
The difficulty is knowing which Belfast Star threat is going to be in form on any day, given the range of potential scorers they boast. Maigh Cuilinn will therefore need an all-round excellent team defensive performance, and big display on the offensive end from either Joseph Tummon, Kyle Cunningham or James Connaire to match what the traveling support hope will be the continued fine form of Grant Ollson.
The game is at 6.30pm in De La Salle Hall on Saturday evening (January 14 ).
