Irish Basketball Super League

Maree 62-86 Belfast Star

Belfast Star travel to face Dublin’s St Vincent’s this weekend sitting joint-top of the National League after a big road win over pace-setting Maree last Saturday in Galway.

Adrian Fulton’s side travelled to Oranmore for the second week in a row after crashing out of the National Cup at the hands of sharp-shooting Maree just seven days previously.

For Star, it was a case of entering the lion’s den once more but this time the Belfast side not only had extra bite, they were also able to maintain great drive and momentum for the full forty minutes, something they had lacked in the National Cup clash.

The victory sent Star to a seven-and-two record as we near the mid-point of the season and the side impressed with five players getting into double figures, as Max Cooper led the way on 19.

Adrian Fulton said he was delighted with the way his team bounced back for the league win after the Cup disappointment.

“We had a great response from the players after the National Cup loss last weekend,” he said.

“We actually had five players in double figures which is always encouraging. Max Cooper got back to good scoring form, Conor Quinn controlled the team exceptionally well from point guard and team captain Conor Johnston gave us terrific scoring off the bench.”

Fulton changed tactics somewhat for the win, opting for a zone defence in large parts and utilising big men Liam Pettigrew and Oisin Kerlin who both put on a huge defensive display.

“I was really pleased with the performances we got out of Liam and Oisin, and not for the first time this season either,” he added.

“Zone defence can be a tough one to master at the best of times and you need players to have a high basketball IQ to succeed at it. But both Liam and Oisin certainly have that, and as a pair they will give us an extra dimension to our game for the rest of the season.

“Overall, it was a good night for us but we will have to be ready to go again this weekend. The league is hugely competitive this year and there’s not a huge amount between any of the sides. So we certainly need to be very wary of St Vincent’s in their home gym,” added Fulton.

Leading the scoring for Star were Max Cooper on 19, Conor Quinn 14, Shon Briggs and Max Richardson on 13 and Conor Johnston on 11.