Late surge sees Eagles swoop for a dramatic win!

Sometimes in a game you are up against it, and someone somewhere needs to draw a line and just say “No, not today, we are not losing today”.

Last Saturday was one such game. Led by a scintillating performance from Carnethia Brown, they reeled in a nine point deficit at the start of the final quarter to beat the Phoenix Rockets by seven, 66-59.

Last October, McEvoy’s Cavan Eagles suffered a narrow three-point defeat away to the Rockets in Lisburn. It stung and remains the Eagles’ only league defeat this season. Thus Saturday's game mattered more than simply a league fixture. It was a rematch, and one that the Eagles were keen to win.

The Rockets are an impressive outfit, entering this season ranked amongst the favorites for the league title. As such, this was always going to be a tough assignment, particularly with their impressive squad of top Irish players and a pair of excellent American’s, New Yorker Jessica Fairweather and Calisha Clark from Indianapolis. But the Eagles coaches were ready, the players were psyched, and the 550 supporters were in full voice, it was all set a cracker, and they didn't disappoint.

Explosive start

The game began in explosive fashion with a determined Eagles playing aggressive defence and high paced offence. Fittingly, the opening score was by Carnethia Brown, an excellent rebound and put back off an Eagles miss. Brown kept the pace high, pushing forward at every opportunity and keeping the Rockets on the back foot. Two early fouls on Eagles’ captain Ciara Tolan saw her replaced by top quality Catalonian, Eli Lopez Sagrera.

The high pace suited the athletic American Eagle Alarie Mayze, who converted three power finishes in a row and the Eagles went 8-3 up. The Rockets called a time out and switched their defence to a 2-3 zone in an effort to slow the game and contain Brown and Mayze. But up stepped Lopez Sagrera who put on a dazzling display of low post moves, spinning right or left and finishing with either hand, for a total of eight first quarter points. The Eagles’ defence was no less impressive, and the Rockets struggled for offence throughout the quarter, only managing to score nine points. The quarter finished with the Eagles up by 12 points, 21-9.

Perhaps the Rockets were rattled by the loud atmosphere at the Virginia Show Centre and the pace at which the Eagles began the game. They had to change things before they lost touch - and change they did. The Rockets started quarter 2 with increased physicality and defensive pressure, which slowed the game down, suiting the Lisburn outfit.

The Eagles began to struggle offensively, missing shots they would normally make, while the Rockets improved their scoring rate thanks to a strong quarter from Irish player, and net ball international, Georgie McGrath. A long range three-pointer from Aoife Maguire and a nice close range conversion from Niamh Tolan helped the Eagles' cause, but it was a poor quarter from the Virginia team. The resurgent Rockets saw the Eagles' lead reduced to the minimum at half time, 28-27.

The third quarter saw the Rockets continue to push, taking the lead after three minutes and putting on a shooting display from beyond the three-point arc. The Rockets' Americans Fairweather and Clark converted three long range efforts between them, and Charley McGrath added a fourth. The Eagles were now on the back foot, struggling to keep in the game even though Carnethia Brown nailed a three-pointer of her own and Emma Tolan and Lopez Sagrera got a couple of nice baskets. The Rockets had outscored the Eagles 20-39 over quarter 2 and 3 and the momentum was firmly with them. It was not looking good for the Eagles who finished the quarter down seven, 41-48.

Drawing a line

The fourth quarter scoring opened with a fine conversion from Rocket Maeve Derry to give them a nine-point lead with only nine minutes remaining. It was then that the Eagles and Carnethia Brown stepped up to the challenge. A line seemed to have been drawn and the tempo changed, the defence intensity upped, and a look of determination fixed on every Eagle face. They were not going to lose! The crowd responded and the decibel levels rose. Every Eagle steal and basket was greeted with a deafening roar, horns and drums blasting. Everyone could sense it; the comeback was on.

A super three-point shot from Emma Tolan seemed to catapult the Eagles forward with Carnethia Brown now bossing the court, moving the ball at speed, and directing traffic. The Eagles’ defence was epic, pressing up the court and tormenting the Rocket ball handlers. Every rebound seemed to be an Eagles rebound, with Ciara Tolan and Casey Mulvey hammering the boards.

The atmosphere was electric as Carnethia Brown became a whirlwind, attacking the Rocket defence relentlessly.

With three minutes to go the Eagles were still down by six points. A three-pointer from Brown and a spinning finish from Lopez Sagrera saw the Eagles bring it back to a one-point lead. Cool heads were needed, and none cooler than the Eagle American pair of Mayze and Brown. Mayze converted a pair of free throws to move the Eagles into the lead with just 90 seconds to go, and followed this with a driving lay-up to push the lead to three-points. With just 40 seconds left Brown took ownership. She was repeatedly fouled by the Rockets and cool as you like nailed five clutch free throws in the last 40 seconds to give the Eagles a fantastic never say die win 66-59.

Next weekend the Eagles are away to National Cup winners the Dublin Lions. This is followed by what looks like a league deciding showdown against St. Paul’s Killarney at the Virginia Show Centre on February 25, 4pm. Be sure to arrive early as seats will fill quickly.