Jack O’Mahony is back to his best for slick Fr Mathew’s basketballers

Fr Mathew’s 84 Scott’s Lakers Killarney 72

A BRILLIANT individual performance from Jack O’Mahony to the tune of 29 points helped Fr Mathew’s defeat Scott’s Lakers Killarney in a highly competitive Men’s Division 1 tie at Fr Mathew’s Arena on Saturday.

In a game where the physical stakes were at fever pitch some of the fouls witnessed wouldn’t have went amiss at the Aviva.

Mathew’s were quickest out of the blocks and inspired by a Declan Cahill three-pointer they surged into a 10-2 lead in the third minute.

To be fair basketball was always had special affection for the townspeople of Killarney and who could forget the late Paudie O’Connor the man who laid the foundation for Americans to play in this country? Gleneagle Lakers were simply awesome but gone are the days when Killarney were a mean machine.

Looking at the present squad American Aaron Jackson is simply not good enough to help his team reach the Holy Grail of a Super League return as he concentrates on playing individual basketball.

Recently Killarney signed Michael McGinn, who strutted his skills with Mathew’s in the last four years, but on this occasion he couldn’t reach the heights he has before.

Indeed the Lakers looked a side that had just come together before tip-off as no plays were run and they had little or no contributions from Carleton Cuff or Brian O’Neill who had experienced playing in the Super League with UCC Demons.

Trailing 24-9 the Lakers were always chasing the game in the second quarter and at times the Cork side looked in a different class to their opponents.

Although Mathew’s have lost two games this season they look a side that could well be in the mix for silverware.

In this game player-coach Darko Bucan, who is doing an excellent job it must be said, only used two players from the bench. That must be frustrating for a stalwart like Paul O’Driscoll a 6’ 8” post-player who could definitely give this Mathew’s side some power on the boards.

The game looked over as a contest at the interval with Mathew’s commanding an 18-point lead and the performance given by O’Mahony rallied them in this period.

It was evident Lakers had no structure in the offence as they consistently drove to the hoop hoping for the best with some ridiculous finishing.

Mathew’s American Jervis Pugh is not spectacular, but he is solid and a perfect fit and entering the last quarter they still commanded a 15-point lead.

It was a case of going through the motions for Mathew’s coming down the stretch as the Lakers were basically outclassed from start to finish.

Scorers for Fr Mathew’s: J O’Mahony 29, J Pugh 25, O Connolly 10.

Scott’s Lakers Killarney: A Jackson 26, S Brosnan 14, B O’Neill 11.

Referees: Catriona White (Dublin), Mike Daly (Limerick).