Coláiste na hInse produce strong finish to see off Patrician Carrickmacross 44-26 in All-Ireland Under 16B Boys Schools League decider

Coláiste na hInse produced a strong fourth quarter to power their way to a 44-26 victory over a gritty Patrician High School Carrickmacross in Thursday’s All-Ireland Under 16B Boys Schools League title game in the National Basketball Arena.

With Kevin Provizors and Adam Borjse combining for 23 points, the Monaghan side did keep themselves in the reckoning throughout most of this decider.

But they were outscored by seven in the fourth, as Coláiste na hInse MVP Sean Phelan, together with Niall Sheedy, helped their side lock down on defence, while Alex Walsh served up seven down the stretch.

Coláiste na hInse hit the ground running, registering the game’s opening seven points that started with a sublime three from Phelan just 12 seconds in before Tomás Harney added as further two buckets.

Patrician did get motoring when captain, Mikey Doogan Burke served up a deuce that was followed by two from the free-throw line for Provizors, but two quick scores from skipper, Nikolas Kornikovs saw the Bettystown side end the first quarter with an 11-4 advantage.

Patrician worked hard to stay in touch throughout the second, Borjse leading the way in that endeavour with six points in that period.

Yet Coláiste na hInse remained in the driving seat, as Alex Walsh got in for a couple of buckets, while Jake Griffiths Travers and Harney also added to the scoreboard to see the Meath side take a 19-13 lead into the half-time recess.

A big score from downtown by Travers widened the gap to nine points, but the Monaghan side kept battling away and two much-needed threes by Provizors reduced their arrears to seven.

Still, it was Coláiste na hInse who ended the third on a high, Phelan’s deuce being followed by a buzzer beater from Walsh that left the Meath side with an 11-point cushion heading into the fourth.

A big final push was needed by Patrician if they were to threaten their opponents’ hold on this game, but it was Coláiste na hInse, instead, who hit the afterburners in the closing eight minutes, the Bettystown side putting up 18 points in that period.

Indeed, Patrician struggled to navigate their way around the imposing Niall Sheedy and Phelan in defence, those same two players also inflicting some damage down the other end as they combined for seven points, while Walsh put up the same amount to take his tally to 11 on the day.

Delighted at seeing his side land this All-Ireland title, Coláiste na hInse head coach, Darren Townes said “Our guys really played good, they played hard today.

“This win is really important because it builds basketball in the school, and these kids can see the success than can come with coming to practice, working hard and really dedicating yourself to it.”

 

Quarter Scores: Q1: 4-11, Q2: 13-19, Q3: 19-30, Q4: 26-44

 

Patrician High School:

James Wakely, Jamie Hughes, Joseph Boylan, Finbarr Brady, Mikey Doogan Burke (capt), Ben Thornton, Noah Hughes, Adam Borjse, Shekino Garrido (vice-capt), Kevin Provizors, Diarmuid Carolan, Ciaran Farrelly.

Top Scorers: Kevin Provizors (13), Adam Borjse (10), Mikey Doogan Burke (2).

Head Coach: Sheila Quinn

 

Coláiste na hInse:

Niall Sheedy, Dovydas Jurgutis, Jake Griffiths Travers, Jamie Farren Doak, Tomás Harney, Kevin Schmadeke, Alex Walsh, Darien Zaharia, Alex Long, Nikolas Kornikovs (capt), Sean Phelan, Papi Diop, Zekai Huang, Adam Kotarba, Emanuel Jicmon.

Top Scorers: Alex Walsh (11), Sean Phelan (9), Tomás Harney (6), Nikolas Kornikovs (6).

Head Coach: Darren Townes

 

MVP:  Sean Phelan (Coláiste na hInse)