Portlaoise come up short in enthralling Division One battle against Malahide
Jayden Umeh top-scored with 22 points for Portlaoise Panthers against Malahide on Saturday
BOWES Auto Centre Portlaoise Panthers came up just short in their latest Domino’s Men’s National League Division One outing against Malahide in Scoil Ruáin, Thurles on Saturday night, despite a massive surge late on that saw them reduce a 16-point gap to just three with just over two minutes remaining.
But their Dublin rivals, desperate for their first win of the campaign, refused to buckle, and hit back with six unanswered points to make it over the line, Spivey Word playing a huge part in that victory with a game-high 34 points, eight rebounds, six assists and as many steals.
He was one of three players to finish in double figures for Malahide, with Gustas Pocevicius and Noham Curens combining for 41 points, as the visitors finally got off the mark at the fourth attempt.
Portlaoise had some big hitters of their own in this titanic tussle, Jayden Umeh serving up a prolific display as he hit 22 points, with Tommy DiRienzo just two off that total, while there double-doubles for both Mykyta Hural (16 points and 11 rebounds) and Rich Ashu (13 points and as many rebounds).
But, even all that was not enough to prevent Portlaoise slipping to 2 and 2 in the table, a disappointing result given their big triumph over Maree just the previous week.
While pleased at seeing his side prove so effective in attack, Portlaoise head coach, Ciaran Kiveney lamented their inability to match that performance defensively, telling the : “I suppose if you were to come to me before the game and offer me 100 points, I would have taken it and I would have assumed we would have won. Unfortunately, when you concede 104, it's very hard to win.
“It was a very up-and-down game for us. At times we played fantastic basketball, and at times we made some questionable decisions.
“I think, as a whole, we played very well offensively, but defensively was where we were lacking as a team, and we'll work on that this week.
“One of the great positives we can take from this is that Jayden Umeh had a fantastic game. He hit big shots for us at crucial points when we were coming back in the last quarter.
“He was knocking in threes, he was getting steals, he was fantastic for an 18-year-old, playing with a maturity that is far beyond his years.
“Obviously, we’re very disappointed with the score-line in the end, but there are positives to be taken from it and a lot to be worked on” he said.
In a tight opening quarter in which the two sides were deadlocked on three occasions, Portlaoise did manage to serve up an eight-point run compliments of DiRienzo who followed up a deuce with two sublime three-pointers that propelled his side seven points clear.
Malahide, however, still managed to restore parity with just over a minute remaining in that period before Cillian O’Connell and Trevor Swayne picked up scores from outside and inside the arc respectively to help nudge Panthers into a 30-28 lead.
A treble from Currans had that narrow advantage wiped out less than a minute into the second period, and, while Portlaoise did manage to regain the lead, through scores from Swayne, Ashu and Cormac Howson, Malahide remained hot on their heels.
And big threes from Samuel Badejo, Word and Pocevicius helped see them continue on to overtake into a 58-52 advantage by the half-time recess.
Malahide managed to stay out of reach throughout the third quarter, extending their lead to 12 points as Curans, Badejo and Christian McDonnell followed up on a treble by Pocevicius with scores in the paint.
At the other end of the court, Umeh, Swayne, DiRienzo and Cillian O’Connell put up points to help keep Portlaoise in contention, although they still trailed 80-70 heading into the fourth.
Matters grew more ominous for Kiveney’s side, as Curens drained efforts from both inside and beyond the arc before Word and McDonnell also struck from downtown to propel Malahide 16 points clear.
But 11 points without reply helped cut that gap to just three, Umeh, himself, landing shots from either side of the three-point line, as Portlaoise looked poised to complete a dramatic comeback.
Yet four free throws and a brace from the field from Word helped steady the ship for Malahide as they moved back into a nine-point lead, and even buckets from DiRienzo and Hural either side of another treble from Umeh could not rescue a result for the hosts.
The Laois side will be hoping to serve up a swift response to this setback when they head to Clondalkin next Friday night to face off against a Dublin Lions side, who, like them, have carded two wins from their opening four games.
Indeed, both sides will be eager to card a ‘W’ ahead of the start to their respective National Cup campaigns the following week, with Portlaoise entertaining SPK Utility Trust Lakers in their first-round game.
Cillian O’Connell, Dylan Dunne, Cormac Howson, Jayden Umeh, Trevor Swayne, Davin McEvoy, Rich Ashu, Mykyta Hural, Tommy DiRienzo.
Top Scorers: Jayden Umeh (22), Tommy DiRienzo (20), Mykyta Hural (16), Rich Ashu (13).
Danas Smigelskis, Spivey Word, Colin Bolger, Gustas Pocevicius, Dante Sofia, Samuel Badejo, Noham Curens, Christian McDonnell.
Top Scorers: Spivey Word (34), Gustas Pocevicius (23), Noham Curens (18).
