InsureMyHouse.ie National Cup - Paudie O'Connor Cup final preview

Sunday sees two old rivals, The Address UCC Glanmire and DCU Mercy, come face-to-face in the Paudie O’Connor Cup final of the InsureMyHouse.ie National Cup. When they met in November in the MissQuote.ie Super League it was The Address UCC Glanmire who edged it, 80-77, at the Mardyke Arena. Mark Ingle, DCU Mercy head coach, said: “We are looking forward to renewing our long rivalry with Glanmire in the InsureMyHouse.ie National Cup final. Glanmire have been the top team in the league so far this season. We had a very close game against them in Cork on their home court, so we are excited to be playing them on a neutral court in the National Basketball Arena. It should be a great game."

"She influenced me a lot - she grew up in high school wearing 25…and when I first got here I was looking for 25" - @dcumercy's Alarie Mayze speaks on the influence her mother has had on her basketball career ahead of this Sunday's @insuremyhouseie Paudie O'Connor Cup Final 🙌🎙️ pic.twitter.com/jlQWwBtPEp

— Basketball Ireland (@BballIrl) January 18, 2022

DCU Mercy denied Glanmire the five-in-a-row the last time they met in a Paudie O’Connor Cup final, winning by the narrowest of margins, 72-71, in 2018. The Address UCC Glanmire head coach Mark Scannell says it’s been “too long” since they were last in the Cup final and is happy with how his team are shaping up ahead of Sunday’s game. “It’s been a busy couple of weeks, but I feel playing games has been great preparation for the Cup final. It’s very important now that we enjoy it, but focus on playing the game and not let the occasion get in the way of playing our best basketball. We have a nice rhythm about our play right now, different players stepping up at different times. The balance in the team is good and hopefully that continues into Sunday, but we are under no illusions it will be a difficult game against a very well organised team. Hopefully we are ready for the challenge and have prepared properly. It’s great to be back in the final. It’s been too long.”

Route to the final:

The Address UCC Glanmire

Round 1

Killester 61-102 The Address UCC Glanmire

Quarter-finals

The Address UCC Glanmire 97-59 IT Carlow Basketball

Semi-finals

The Address UCC Glammire 92-82 Singleton Supervalu Brunell (Read game report here)

DCU Mercy

Round 1

Team Garvey’s St. Mary’s 42-66 DCU Mercy

Quarter-finals

DCU Mercy 61-50 Leixlip Amenities Liffey Celtics

Semi-finals

DCU Mercy 68-65 WIT Waterford Wildcats (Read game report here)