Ayr Storm earn historic victory
First home triumph in Division Two
Ayr Storm ........ 68 Falkirk Fury2 ... 34
Ayr Storm are celebrating their first home win in Scottish Basketball Championship U16m Division Two.
The 68- 34 victory came against Falkirk Fury2, the team who two seasons ago beat them in the play- off final, denying them an unbeaten season and promotion.
Storm opened fast and strong with guards Paul Gibbons and Isaac Tomba enjoying having Matthew Morrison back in the team alongside Mathew Keegan.
This gave them more options on the break and the two Matts combined to score 19 of Ayr’s 21 points in the opening period.
Strong rebounding from Gabriel Lorimer in defence limited Fury’s second chances and helped Storm take a nine- point lead.
In P2, Ayr stepped up the pressure, forcing turnover after turnover. Cammy Lang and Nathan Bradley came off the bench and Fury couldn’t get close to a basket.
This gave coach Danny Gibbons the chance to give U14 squad members Fraser Reid and Jackson Tindle their first taste of Scottish Basketball Championship play.
It wasn’t until the last minute of the period that Fury got their first open- play basket and Storm took P2 14- 3.
With a 20- point lead, Ayr followed the recommendation for SBC Div 2 and ensured a maximum of three starters were on court at any one time – it meant more experience gained for the whole squad and new combinations could be tried.
There was no dip in Ayr’s dominance as they took P3 15- 7 and the final period18- 12 and move to a two win, two loss record in their debut season in the division.
Coach Gibbons said: “Last week we relied on Paul and Mathew K to lead our scoring, and it was great to have Matthew M back this week to add a third option.
“This made it harder for Fury to work out where the threats would come from and we could stretch the game. It was great to get the younger U16m and even two U14m more involved.
“This will benefit us over the season as the squad gets stronger together.”
The full Storm squad was: P Gibbons ( 12pts), C Lang, I Tomba ( 6), F Reid, J Tindle, M Morrison ( 16), D Pirie ( 4), M Keegan ( 23), G Lorimer ( 6), N Bradley, B Ferguson ( 1).
This will benefit us over the season as the squad gets stronger together. Danny Gibbons