17.2.2016: Sony Centre Fury - Boroughmuir Blaze 74:68 - SCOTTISH LEAGUE CHAMPION!
This weekend's Game of the Week action took us to The Mariner as we watched Sony Centre Fury attempt to win the SBC Title. Standing in their way were Edinburgh side, Boroughmuir Blaze.
Both sides were aware of what was at stake and a win for the Fury team would see them crowned League Champions for the fourth time in five seasons. Boroughmuir Blaze were not only playing to keep their title defence alive, but also knew they would most likely finish in 3rd if they suffered a defeat. There was a huge crowd and atmosphere to match the occasion with the Mariner truly at capacity.
Fury opened the scoring with two 3’s, quickly setting the crowd into a title party mood. As the quarter progressed it appeared the home side could go on a run at any point, however Blaze didn’t let the game get far away from them, staying calm and composed. At the end of a fast-paced first quarter, the score was 21-17 in favour of Fury.
To start the 2nd period, Fury began to put some defensive stops together and this was allowed them to get some great opportunities on the opposite end of the floor. The scoring load was being shared throughout the Fury team and quickly it was 30-19, Falkirk looking as though they were about to put the game beyond doubt.
However, Blaze seemed to flick the switch required to put an unprecedented run together. Suddenly, Blaze really started playing some impressive team basketball. Sam Stott was hitting shots, Jordan Green was making crafty moves to the basket, and Eoghann Dover was coordinating his side at the guard spot.
In a matter of minutes, Boroughmuir had reduced the lead to 4, and then in the final moments of the half, grabbed their first lead of the game. Fury for almost the first time this season, seemed rattled as Captain Keith Bunyan picked up a Technical foul. The visitors led going into the half, 38-40.
The half-time break gave the crowd and teams alike to take a breath, but the atmosphere remained, as we awaited 20 more minutes of high quality, intense basketball.
Blaze were able to continue their run that ended the first half, opening the 2nd with a 6-0 run, stretching their lead to 8. It was time for Fury to step up, perhaps not only the game on the line, but maybe the SBC trophy which they already had one hand on.
Bryan Munnoch hit a 3 to stop the Blaze momentum which was followed by Adam Hammerschmidt hitting 8 points in a row without a Blaze response, overall an 11-0 run for Fury. Again, Falkirk were in the lead, and then the game went basket-for-basket for the rest of the quarter. With only 10 minutes to play, it was still neck-and-neck, at 59-58.
Blaze struggled to begin the 4th quarter, and the game started to slip away from them as Fury built a 7 point lead. It was then Fury who started to struggle, finding it hard to get anything to go. This opened the door for Blaze to fight their way back once more.
The scoreline was 69-68 in favour of the home side with just 2:30 left on the clock. There were chances for Blaze to grab the lead but they couldn’t convert setting up an opportunity for Adam Hammerschmidt to have the ball down the stretch and a pivotal and-1 play with just 40 seconds left, gave Falkirk a 73-68 lead.
After another few efforts from Blaze, they conceded defeat as the clock wound down and the Mariner crowd got to their feet to celebrate a 4th SBC title in 5 years.
Following the game, Sony Centre Fury Head Coach, John Bunyan, was positive about the game: "Tough game, it was pretty much as we predicted it would be, they would come out and be aggressive, put a lot of pressure on us. Initially we did well, then there was a little spell that pulled them back into the game, and pulled them back into having a chance of the title. It was quite difficult, playing what is almost a two leg tie, you don’t want to go into the game thinking you are 17 up as that’s a policy for disaster. The 3rd quarter we just focused, got off to a good start and didn’t really look back after that. It came close, but when it got close it was more about winning the game rather than losing the title. Really happy with how this season has went, 4thtitle in 5 years and the double so far, and we are going for the treble. When we were doing well I was just asking the guys to keep focused but we always know that a team like Blaze more than most teams are going to come back at you. Overall, it was a good performance. This is our last season at the Mariner, we are moving to Grangemouth next season, so to win the title in our final season here is great for us."
Boroughmuir Blaze Captain Eoghann Dover thought his team could’ve won the match: "It was a tough game, I thought we were going to pull it out, but a couple of missed conversions from us combined with big plays from Hammerschmidt got them the win. Consistency in our approach was key, that was the most balanced I’ve seen us. We weren’t too excited when we went on runs, but we also managed to stay together as a unit when things weren’t going well. We went into the game just looking to win it like any other game, It’s always fun to play Falkirk at the Mariner so we were just focused on doing our best to try and win the game. We know we will most likely finish 3rd, we’re happy enough with that and we’ll just deal with the situation we’re in."
https://basketballscotland.co.uk/news_detail/10019500/
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FURY BLAZE TO 4TH LEAGUE TITLE IN 5 SEASONS
SONY CENTRE FURY 74 BOROUGHMUIR BLAZE 68
Scottish Senior Men’s Division 1 Championship
FURY ARE SCOTTISH CHAMPIONS after a 6pt win over Championship holders Blaze. MVP of the Scottish Cup Final (when Fury defeated Blaze), Austrian ace Adam Hammerschmidt was again the Blaze slayer with 29 personal! that makes a whopping 55 pts AAA has scored against Blaze in a 2 week spell that has decided the Cup & League titles !
The win means Fury have won the Scottish League and Cup double three times in the past 4 seasons and the League title, 4 of the past 5 seasons.
In front of another capacity Mariner SC crowd, the Fury fans were treated to an up-tempo game that saw their side take the opening period 21-17. Back to back threes from Austrian ace Adam Hammerschmidt gave the Falkirk side a 6-0 start, but the teams then traded baskets to the end of the period. Fury were of course playing the game knowing even a 15 pt or less loss to Blaze would still give them the League title, but this cushion appeared to be of no consequence when the Falkirk side stormed to 30-18 game lead a few minutes into the second quarter. Hammerschmidt had added another 6 personal and Captain Keith Bunyan with a long 3 forced Blaze into a timeout now 12 behind and their slim hopes of challenging for the title looking in tatters.
However as the period progressed Blaze showed why they are so dangerous as they got the better of the Sony sponsored side taking a 40-38 pt lead into the half and reducing the overall points difference, key in the title race. The start of the third saw Fury centre Ross Gibson immediately bring the game level. There then followed a 3 point shooting barrage with both sides hitting 4 threes apiece as the quarter closed out at Fury now back in front at 59-58. Bryan Munnoch, Hammerschmidt and Eddy Leginas with two back to back threes to close the third were key to Fury in this run. As the 4th and final period progressed it was clear the League title was now Fury’s and what was at stake was the game – Fury’s outstanding home court record and to give the 300 plus fans a winning Fury finish. While Scottish Cup Finals MVP Adam Hammerschmidt continued to pile on the points , 7 in the final period, the game was won by former Scotland Junior Connor Martin who took his game to another level with 7 straight points and a series of rebounds, interceptions and sheer energy that secured not just the title but the game for Fury.
As the final whistle sounded it was an ecstatic Mariner crowd who greeted their team – Scottish Champions – again. There was no trophy to present with Basketball-Scotland choosing not to present it on the night – a disappointing decision considering a Fury win was always going to mean that even with 1 game left to play – Fury are Champions, without even needing to play that match. So the Championship League trophy will be officially presented to Fury prior to the start of the Edinburgh Kings game at the Mariner on Friday 3rd March.
Top scorers for Fury were Adam Hammerschmidt with 29, with Bunyan, Leginas and Martin sharing 27 pts. Munnoch had 8pts with Lubeigt 6 and Gibson 4.
Fury Headcoach John Bunyan commented to Heraldsport who like BS covered the game live –
“This 5 season stretch speaks volumes of the club’s ability to continue to play at the very top level. We have managed to maintain key players over that period, develop young players from our own club and make a key signing in Adam Hammerschmidt. The performance Connor Martin had in the final period justified the faith I have had in him and I know we have a number of young players who are capable of emulating the great players we have in the Men’s team. I have to give credit to all the Men’s squad as you cannot produce quality game performances without quality practice situations and I firmly believe that’s where we are ahead of the pack in Scottish basketball. I would like to highlight the great example Keith sets – at 39yrs he is an example to all Scottish players, training 6 days a week and working with our younger players and motivating our Men’s team. Walter Lubeigt also has bounced back from injury was a real key in the last two matches when the Championship was on the line.
One final point would be our ‘super fans ‘who are simply the biggest and best crowd in Scottish basketball – a fact recognised by all other teams. We have worked hard at getting what is a great family situation on game night and when over 100 kids play at half-time and when we finish, cover the whole floor then we know we will keep getting great players !“