Limerick Sport Eagles sharp-shooter shines for Ireland against Luxembourg in FIBA EuroBasket 2029 Pre-Qualifiers

IRELAND put in a dogged performance to beat Luxembourg 91-85 and pick up their first win of their FIBA EuroBasket 2029 Pre-Qualifiers campaign and first under new head coach Michael Bree.

The did so effectively only using a seven player rotation, as injury ruled out Sam Alajiki and Rapolas Buivydas beforehand, while three players only came off the bench in the closing seconds.

Limerick Sport Eagles' Ryan Leonard, in just his second FIBA EuroBasket game, hit six threes on his way to a 21 point haul, while Neal Quinn finished with a team-high 22 points and CJ Fulton showed his class with 12 assists and seven points, as he dictated the tempo for much of the second half, with Michael Bree afterwards hailing "a really great team performance."

Ireland started brightly, three’s from Leonard and Matt Zona helped them into an early 6-2 lead. A Fulton layup had Ireland 15-9 up midway through the quarter.

A Quinn alley oop layup and additional free throw put Ireland 22-13 to the good with a little over three minutes left, Quinn had picked up nine of Ireland’s points in the opening quarter. Luxembourg responded with a nine point run, finished off by a layup from Oliver Vujakovic, to leave them 23-22 ahead at the end of the first quarter.

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Ireland nudged themselves back in front thanks to an eight point run, five of those points were scored by Adrian O’Sullivan, a three pointer and a layup, to put Ireland 30-23 up three and half minutes into the quarter.

A two point shot from Vujakovic snapped Ireland’s scoring, but captain Sean Flood followed it with a long range three. By the time Quinn had unloaded a dunk by the midpoint, Ireland were 35-27 ahead. Luxembourg came back into the contest thanks to back-to-back baskets from Clancy Rugg and Ben Kovac, to reduce the deficit to four. It would be the same margin by half-time, a pair of Zona free throws in the final minute had Ireland 39-35 ahead.

Ireland started the third with a Zona three. A corner three from Leonard and Zona’s second from the three point line in the quarter stretched Ireland’s lead to 13 points, 50-37, with a little over two minutes gone, prompting a Luxembourg timeout.

They came out of it with a Rugg jump shot, but Leonard was proving clinical from the three point line, he drained two more to put Ireland 58-44 up midway through the quarter. Luxembourg ate into Ireland’s lead, a deep three from Kovac made it a five point game, 58-53, with three minutes to go.

Jordan Blount, who announced his retirement from 5x5 international basketball prior to the game, provided the assist for Quinn’s dunk to make it 60-53. Ireland would lead 65-56 by the end of the quarter.

Luxembourg made fast start to the fourth thanks to Philippe Gutenkauf’s jump shot and two Kovac free throws. Ireland responded emphatically with back-to back three’s from Zona and Leonard, to put them 71-60 ahead two minutes in. Luxembourg rattled off five points through a Rugg three and a Kovac driving layup.

A Fulton three and a Quinn layup helped Ireland into a 77-69 lead halfway through the quarter. Ireland’s lead was 10 points, 82-72, with four minutes to go when Flood landed from the three point line. Fulton was pulling the strings, he picked out Quinn for his layup and Ireland led 84-74 with three and a half minutes remaining.

The Iowa Wolves man was at it again for Sullivan’s layup and Ireland were 88-77 ahead with a minute and a half to go. Sean Fitzpatrick came off the bench late on to make his international debut, as Ireland closed out the game.

Ireland head coach, Michael Bree, said: "I am delighted, the guys believed in what we’re trying to do and they executed brilliantly on the floor. I think we had a couple of possessions where we lost our way, but for the most part we were in control of what we were doing and what we were trying to do.

"Ryan Leonard was fantastic, Matt Zona fantastic, the guards getting rid of the ball was brilliant and it was a really great team performance, I am delighted for them."

Asked about having to manage the effective seven player rotation, Bree added: "I didn’t have to manage it, they had to manage it, they survived, they’re well able to do it, they’re pros, so they play a lot, they’re going to have a rest tomorrow, so they’re okay. I was good with it, maybe they’re going to feel sore, but I was good with it."

Ireland are now 1-3 in Group A, next up is back-to-back away games against North Macedonia and Azerbaijan in July. The group winners and best ranked second placed team from three groups advance to the second round of qualifying

Quarter Scores:

Q1: 22-23, Q2: 17-12, Q3: 26-21, Q4: 26-29

Game Scores:

Q1: 22-23, Q2: 39-35, Q3: 65-56, Q4: 91-85

Ireland:

Adrian O’Sullivan (7), CJ Fulton (7), Sean Fitzpatrick (0), Ryan Leonard (21), Sean Flood (16), Jordan Blount (0), James Gormley (0), Matt Zona (18), Eoin Nelson (0), Neal Quinn (14).

Luxembourg:

Malcolm Kreps (9), Dino Ceman (DNP), Max Logelin (4), Philippe Gutenkauf (15), Joe Kalmes (7), Ben Kovac (17), Davy David Rocha (0), Oliver Vujakovic (8), Christopher Jack (0), Yannick Verbeelen (DNP), Clancy Rugg (23), Ivor Kuresevic (2)