OISIN Kerlin believes Belfast Star made a big statement in their nailbiting 83-82 victory over Ballincollig in the All Ireland Superleague at New Forge on Saturday night.

Kerlin gave arguably his best performance of the season, coming up with numerous blocks and at both ends of the court he made his presence felt as Star won a thriller that was in the balance right up to the final buzzer.

Kerlin said: “I think that was a very important win and it’s one that was coming. I think we knew we could trust each other to get across the line and it should act as a real springboard for the rest of the season.

“I believe the stats say they’re the best defensive team in the league so for us to get this win and give such a good performance defensively ourselves means a lot. From a personal point of view, I’m very happy with my performance but it’s all about just helping the team get the win.”

While Kerlin was a rock in defence, English professional Max Cooper was outstanding in offence, finishing with 26 points and seven rebounds and he would ultimately have the final say.

With seven seconds remaining, he slotted home two free throws to put Star into a three-point lead. There was still one last chance for Ballincollig to draw level but Todd Wolfe’s (29pts) three-point attempt clipped the rim. Joshua Tomaic tipped in the rebound just before the buzzer.

The packed New Forge arena erupted as they hailed a victory that pushed Star up the Superleague table into sixth spot and only three points behind Ballincollig with a couple of games in hand.

Cooper commented: “I had my sister watching me for the first time as a professional and my girlfriend Hayle also flew in from America so to give a performance like that in front of them means a lot and I nailed the two free throws at the end which was crucial.

“It’s a massive win for us, to beat the team in fourth who were on a five-game winning streak and you know we shouldn’t be losing the games we’re losing because we’re a good team. I think this should give us a lot of confidence.

“I felt this was a good game on defence. We didn’t play well against Sligo on defence but in this game everyone played their role. If we can now put a run together then we could be top four in three games time.”

Down 19-17 after the first quarter, Star then had to put Max Richardson on the bench two minutes into the second quarter as he picked up a third foul. But Conor Ryan and Kerlin came off the bench and gave important contributions. Ryan came up with a three to edge Star ahead.

With a minute remaining in the quarter, Adrian O’Sullivan hit a three before Cooper’s basket got Star to within a point at the break, down 37-36.

Star’s defence stood out in the third quarter, while the highlight was a stunning steal by Ryan who then released Aidan Quinn to convert, giving the home side a 10-point lead. But after calling a time-out Ballincollig responded with Wolfe and O’Sullivan cutting the deficit in half.

Leading 60-55 going into the final quarter, Quinn made his presence felt for Star with a three and then a steal which he converted.

Two more threes followed, which were matched by Wolfe and when Darweshi Hunter missed two free throws Wolfe gave his side the lead 80-79 with 40 seconds remaining. Cooper then delivered to nudge Star ahead and when Deondre Jackson was fouled he held his nerve to seal the game with those two free throws.

Star head coach Sean Ingle said: “It’s a massive win for us especially because in the last two games we were in tight games and didn’t get the win so this is a massive boost for our morale. It showed that we can execute down the stretch and get the win.

“Defensively, to hold a team as strong as Ballincollig are to 82 points shows that defensively we are starting to click and hopefully we can see consistency with that. Our offence can be better and we just need to start putting both parts of the court together.”