Outstanding defensive display paves the way for Moycullen's stunning victory over champs

Moycullen 64Killester 58

IN almost three years of Superleague competition Moycullen had yet to get within single digits of Killester, the two time defending league champions.

On Saturday in NUI Galway, without the services of their star American centre Luke Enos, who is recovering from an ankle injury, Moycullen beat their Dublin counterparts by a deserved six points.

The win was built on an incredible defensive performance that limited the normally high scoring Killester team to a season low 58 points. Although severely undersized, Moycullen did an excellent job of protecting close to the basket with Paul O'Brien, in particular, doing an outstanding job on Killester's main threat, 6ft 6 Jermaine Turner. He was helped by a team tactic of swarming the ball close to the ring and forcing Killester to shoot from range.

Meanwhile, the scoring gap left by Enos' absence was filled by a collaborative effort with three Moycullen players scoring in the teens, while five players connected on three pointers at some stage in the contest.

That team effort was on show from the start of the game when Moycullen's sharp cutting seemed to surprise the visitors, helping the home side establish an early seven point lead.

Killester are not league champions for nothing, however and when Moycullen's concentration waned later in the half, they took full advantage, sparking a deadly run that saw the champions take in a three point lead at the break.

The Dubliner's size advantage meant that they were always able to find the occasional score off rebounds and, as such, the game remained closely fought throughout the third quarter.

For Moycullen, good movement saw them keeping pace on the scoreboard while tenacious defence levelled the size advantage somewhat on that end.

It all seemed to have been in vain, however, when Killester started to pull away early in the fourth quarter, extending a lead out to six points at one stage.

Moycullen's experience in close games this year shone through from that point onwards and it was the young westerners who handled the closing minutes like the veteran team.

For more, read this week's Connacht Tribune.