Limerick Eagles beat reigning Super League champions Ballincollig 96–67 at St Munchin's College on Saturday night, in front of a full house for the club's first home game since promotion. Alex Carlisle scored 31 points and made six of his ten three-point attempts. The Eagles are two from two to start the season.
Ballincollig scored the first four points of the night. The Eagles levelled at 6–6, 8–8 and 10–10, then scored ten points without reply to lead 20–10. Carlisle had three threes in the quarter. The Eagles made 11 of their 18 shots in the first ten minutes and led 28–14 at the end of it.
The second quarter was tighter. Ballincollig got the gap back to 11 at 39–28 with just over three minutes left in the half, before the Eagles closed the quarter with an 8–2 run to lead 47–30 at the break. Aaron Rhooms was the main scorer inside the arc, and Ryan Leonard had most of his 11 defensive rebounds by half-time.
Ballincollig made the better start to the second half and pulled it back to 61–45 with just under six minutes left in the third quarter. The Eagles then scored the last 17 points of the quarter. Aleksandar Kovacevic finished twice at the rim during the run, Carlisle added two more threes, and the quarter ended 78–45. The lead reached 38 points at 86–48 early in the fourth.
The bench played most of the final quarter, which Ballincollig won 22–18. Fryderyk Klimas grabbed four offensive rebounds in 11 minutes, and Sean Ryan, Kirill Yakovlev and Ronan Cregan all saw the floor.
Carlisle finished with 31 points on 11 of 17 shooting, with five rebounds and two assists in 30 minutes. Rhooms scored 18 with six rebounds. Kovacevic had 16 points on seven of 11 shooting and eight rebounds in 18 minutes. Toby Christensen ran the offence: ten points, nine assists and no turnovers. Leonard had eight points, 11 rebounds and five assists, and Darragh Horkan made five steals.
The Eagles shot 48 per cent from the field and made 11 threes. They had 27 assists on 36 baskets and 15 steals. Ballincollig shot 29 per cent, made six of 33 from three and turned the ball over 23 times. Alejandro Bellver led them with 18 points and 11 rebounds, Adrian O'Sullivan and Israel Momodu scored 14 each, and Jakevion Buckley, who scored 23 against Limerick Celtics the week before, was held to two points.
The Eagles are at home again on Saturday 17 October, against Griffith College Éanna at the UL Sport Arena. Tip-off is 4pm.
Thank you to The Buttery, our game sponsor for Saturday's win over Ballincollig. Support the businesses that support the Eagles.
Score by quarter
| Team | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Limerick Eagles | 28 | 19 | 31 | 18 | 96 |
| Ballincollig | 14 | 16 | 15 | 22 | 67 |
Eagles box score
| Player | Min | Pts | Reb | Ast | Stl | 3PM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alex Carlisle | 30 | 31 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 6 |
| Aaron Rhooms | 29 | 18 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Aleksandar Kovacevic | 18 | 16 | 8 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
| Toby Christensen | 27 | 10 | 5 | 9 | 2 | 0 |
| Ryan Leonard | 25 | 8 | 11 | 5 | 2 | 1 |
| Darragh Horkan | 27 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 1 |
| Fryderyk Klimas | 11 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Sean Ryan | 13 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Daniel Shahab | 14 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| Kirill Yakovlev | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Ronan Cregan | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Team totals: 25 of 42 from two, 11 of 33 from three, 13 of 20 free throws, 47 rebounds (14 offensive), 27 assists, 15 steals, 21 turnovers. Ballincollig: 16 of 43 from two, 6 of 33 from three, 17 of 21 free throws, 41 rebounds (17 offensive), 14 assists, 23 turnovers. Final score: Limerick Eagles 96–67 Ballincollig.
Sources: Official game statistics, Domino's Men's Super League 2026-27, Round 2.
