Super League wrap: Maree & Emporium set for showdown

University of Galway Maree and Emporium Cork Basketball will contest the InsureMyVan.ie Super League play-off final, coming out on top of two, highly charged semi-finals this weekend to set up a 'Super Saturday’ showdown at the National Basketball Arena.

Charlie Crowley’s InsureMyHouse.ie National Cup winners trailed by four points entering the final quarter, before running out 87-75 winners on home court against Belfast Star.

Meanwhile Emporium Cork Basketball also needed to overturn a half-time deficit to take the bragging rights 84-76 against a valiant UCC Demons in the Mardyke Arena.

University of Galway Maree showed unerring accuracy to finish with a 29-14 advantage over Belfast Star at the end of the opening quarter of their matchup.

Zvonimir Cutuk and Rodrigo Gomez began with early intent, hitting a pair of threes, while Jarett Haines continued his strong form, getting to the basket no fewer than four occasions in the opening ten minutes.

Belfast Star have plenty of experience in their ranks though and the 2020 Super League champions showed that gritty spirit in abundance over the next two quarters of play. Chrishon Briggs has been among the form players in the league in recent weeks and he once again stood up for Adrian Fulton’s men. Briggs scored 22 points in 15 minutes, ably assisted by Aidan and Conor Quinn who added 18 points of their own.

The gap was 10 points, 50-40 at the half but when Briggs scored the final seven points of the third, the game had flipped in Star’s favour and it was 65-61 as the teams emerged for the fourth quarter.

It wasn’t long before both sets of fans at the Kingfisher gym witnessed another turn. University of Galway Maree scored the first eight points through Gomez, Cutuk and a Stephen