Calasanctius College, Oranmore, has secured another schools’ basketball crown, winning the u-19A title.
It took a dogged and resilient performance against a Castleisland side that pushed hard, but ultimately fell short by 74-64.
Oranmore were first off the mark with Donal Greene opening the scoring, and thanks to some good link play between Kenneth Hansberry and Padraig Burke, they brought the lead to 8 -0.
While Oranmore enjoyed an advantage in height and physicality, Castleisland’s Brosnan and Jones were a real threat in attack, reducing the deficit to just two. As a result Oranmore stepped up their defence, and excellent free-throw shooting from Enda Walsh brought the score to 20 -9 at the end of the first quarter.
Castleisland set about reducing the deficit early in the second with some quick play, but reasserted control with Evan Finn and Cormac Shields coming into the game to cover the fast break. Ken Hansberry showed off his all-round skills with a shot from deep to move Oranmore 10 points ahead again, and by half time they led 38-27.
Oranmore came under pressure in the third with Walsh on four fouls, which gave Castleisland much-needed confidence as they reduced the gap to three. Brosnan proved a consistent thorn in the Oranmore side as Castleisland levelled with two minutes remaining in the third. Oranmore eked out a three-point lead heading into the last quarter 51-48, looking under a little pressure as Burke and Greene had picked up three fouls each.
Oranmore’s Walsh and Burke scored in quick succession early in the fourth and once again set about putting some distance on the score board. Oranmore, dominating the pace of the game, stretched the lead through MVP Hansberry. Although Declan Cahill hit three for Castleisland, it was too late as Oranmore ran out deserving winners.
