Will St.Pauls Killarney or iSecure Swords Thunder gain promotion to the MissQuote.ie Super League?

A place in the MissQuote.ie Super League is on offer for St. Pauls Killarney and iSecure Swords Thunder at the National Basketball Arena on Saturday afternoon on basketballireland.tv.

The MissQuote.ie Division One season comes to a crescendo as the North and South Conference winners lock horns for a second time this season. For the Kerry side it’s a return to the stage where they faltered against Portlaoise Panthers a year ago, while iSecure Swords Thunder are looking to complete a remarkable turnaround in fortunes from a team who finished with a 4-14 record last season.

‘We’re delighted to be back in the final after the disappointment of last year,” said St. Pauls Killarney captain Lynn Jones. That final saw James Fleming’s side give up a 12-point lead at the half, in a game which they never trailed until the midway point in the fourth quarter. “We are looking forward to a tough battle with Thunder and the ultimate goal is to achieve promotion this year,” added Jones. 

St. Pauls have been a freight train for the most part in the MissQuote.ie Division One. The only stumbling block proved to be tomorrow’s opponents, as they were routed 87-67 in Dublin for their sole defeat of the regular season. Bringing in Kharica Rasheed from The Address UCC Glanmire has been a bit of a coup and pairing her alongside returnee Sofia Paska could prove the difference maker from disappointment last year to ecstasy on Saturday evening. Paska remains on course to average a double-double with 20.6 points per game and 10.4 boards, adding another 19.5 ppg from Rasheed will be a difficult proposition to stop, even for the third ranked defence in the league. 

Will it be a Dublin or Kerry side who gain promotion to the @missquoteie Super League for 2024/25? 🤨

📆 | Saturday, March 9th
📍 | National Basketball Arena
⏰ | 14:45
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On the other side of the bleachers, captain Peggy Black summed up the feeling of rejuvenation in the iSecure Swords Thunder club under first year head coach Paul Carr: “It’s an exciting time for our team and club to be in this position playing in our first league final. We’re really looking forward to it as a group,” she said ahead of the contest. ‘Exciting’ has often used to describe the combination struck up by Jensen Caretti and Jasmine Walker this season.

Similarly to Sofia Paska, Caretti Is also averaging a double-double. 23ppg and 10.3 assists per game at this point is remarkable. Walker has proved an equally astute pick up, contributing 16.2ppg, 6.3 rpg and 3.1 assists. It’s not just statistics but the overall feel-good factor that has been a major factor in their 13-3 record. iSecure Swords Thunder have needed to dig deep at various points and their 68-57 defeat of Limerick Celtics in the last four highlighted just how far they’ve come as a group. Eight players featured for more than 11-minutes, building depth like that during a long season comes to fruition in these moments.

Interestingly both head coaches view themselves as underdogs. “St.Pauls have set the standard in the league this year and I think James has done a great job, so they deserve the title of favourite going into the game,” said Paul Carr. “At the start of the season with a new coach, new players and a lot of unknowns I don't think any of us imagined being in this position so we will enjoy the occasion and the challenge,” he added. 

“We know that we’re really up against it.,” asserts his counterpart for St. Pauls James Fleming. “We’re the big underdogs against a team with a wealth of experience, but we are really looking forward to it. It’s great to be back in a national final.”