Below par Moycullen disappoint

MOYCULLEN basketballers produced one of their flattest performances of the season on Saturday night, failing to ever get a real foothold in the game and dropping to a disappointing 13 point defeat to Northern Conference title challengers, Belfast Star, at home.

It was a particularly disheartening result considering Moycullen had taken their opponents to overtime in the teams’ first encounter in Belfast. On this occasion, Moycullen just couldn’t get their defence up to the pace required and conceded way too many points to lay-ups, both in transition and on set plays.

In fairness to Star, they have improved a lot from the first encounter and the result was as much a reflection of Star’s progress as Moycullen’s poor play. Stephen Dawson was a particular thorn in the home team’s side as his aggressive drives split the Moycullen defence at will while American, Kevin Ratzsch outmuscled and outhustled a variety of Moycullen markers.

Coach Enda Byrt was at a loss to explain such a muted defensive display given the battling performance shown in the previous encounter with Northern Conference leaders, Killester, and the highly competitive training sessions in between.

Both teams opened tentatively with the first score taking close to two minutes to arrive. Scottie Summersgill provided it with a drive through the middle of the Moycullen zone. James Loughnane responded for Moycullen but Stephen Dawson was already up to speed, hitting the next two scores.

Moycullen came out with a little more intensity in the second quarter and Cian Nihill narrowed the gap with the first two scores. Ratzsch responded for Star but another pair of Garnett Griffin baskets narrowed the gap again. Just as the team’s efforts finally gave some encouragement to the muted home support and the atmosphere began to build, Moycullen’s intensity mysteriously dropped again and Star stretched the lead with easy scores from Summersgill, McGratten and Ratzsch.

A ten point lead was no more than Star deserved but Moycullen did manage to find some fire in the closing minute and baskets from the ever impressive Nihill and a strangely subdued Nate Fritzsch narrowed the half time deficit to four, 38-34.

Needing a good start in the third quarter, Moycullen got the opposite. Dawson got away on the break and converted a pair of lay-ups and a three from Summersgill stretched the lead to double figures. Moycullen were at sixes and sevens defensively but managed to hang in with scores from Griffin and Nihill (a three).

Frustrated with the lack of intensity on court, Coach Byrt replaced all five players and this had the desired effect with a pair of Mindaugus Kurcenkovas baskets and a superb score from Nollaig Cunningham narrowing the gap to seven at quarter’s end, 50-57.

Moycullen carried the momentum from the third quarter into the fourth, but, unfortunately, Star were now playing with total confidence as well. This made for a thrilling display of offence as Nate Fritsch came to life and shared 11 points with young James Loughnane only for Ratzsch and Michael McKillop to respond for the visitors.

Moycullen must now regroup with a week off before a likely refixed game against Cup and League holders, Blue Demons the following weekend. Coach Byrt’s challenge will be both technical and psychological as he deals with the more glaring defensive flaws and the puzzling lack of intensity from a team which has always given its all regardless of the difficulty of the challenge involved.

For a more complete match report see page 50 of this week’s Connacht Tribune