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. Most of that run came on the break: a stop, a quick outlet and a score before Ballincollig could set their defence. 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 Eagles' defence caused Ballincollig problems all night. The Eagles went to their zone early and the champions never looked comfortable against it. They found it hard to get open looks at the basket, moved the ball around the perimeter without getting inside it, and settled for contested threes. They made six of 33 from outside on the night and shot 29 per cent overall. The pressure also produced steals, 15 of them, and those steals lit the fuse on the Eagles' transition offence. Many of their baskets came on the break, with Toby Christensen and Ryan Leonard pushing the ball ahead of the defence and Darragh Horkan jumping passing lanes.
Christensen orchestrated everything on offence. His passing was sublime, in transition and in the half court, and he finished with nine assists and no turnovers in 27 minutes. Nine assists without a single turnover against the reigning champions is an incredible night's work for a point guard.
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, several of his baskets coming on the run, and 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, and the pace of the game decided it. Steals turned into layups at the other end, 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 was brilliant. Sean Ryan, Daniel Shahab and Fryderyk Klimas brought great energy every time they came on, and the level never dropped. Shahab had four assists and three rebounds in 14 minutes, Klimas grabbed four offensive rebounds in 11, and Ryan added three points, two rebounds and a steal. The bench played most of the final quarter, which Ballincollig won 22–18, and Kirill Yakovlev and Ronan Cregan also got minutes.
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. Christensen added ten points to his nine assists. Leonard had eight points, 11 rebounds and five assists, and Horkan made five steals.
The Eagles shot 48 per cent from the field and made 11 threes. They had 27 assists on 36 baskets, the mark of a team that shared the ball and ran at every chance, and 15 steals. Ballincollig turned the ball over 23 times and had only 14 assists against the zone. 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.
Thank you to every Eagles supporter who packed into St Munchin's on Saturday. The support was fantastic from the first minute to the last, and the players felt it. Come and do it again this Saturday, 17 October, when the Eagles host Griffith College Éanna at the UL Sport Arena. Tip-off is 4pm. Read the preview and book your tickets.
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.
