Punter balls out as Virtus Bologna take BCL title
Basket City is back baby. With victory in the 2019 Basketball Champions League (BCL), Virtus Bologna ended a 10 year drought of major honours as they ensured another banner would be raised in PalaDozza. Emmet Ryan watched it all in the Sportpaleis in Antwerp Kevin Punter came here to play and the well-traveled man delivered […]
What you need to know about the Basketball Champions League final
It all comes down to this, Virtus Bologna vs Tenerife for one of the biggest prizes in European basketball. Rather than just do a straight preview, Emmet Ryan has a primer for those unfamiliar with the Basketball Champions League (BCL) or indeed the teams After two lopsided encounters in the semi-finals on Friday, both Virtus […]
Tenerife tame the Giants to progress in Antwerp
The crowd came, they brought the noise, they set a record, and they had reason for hope, but the young Antwerp Giants simply couldn’t overcome a canny Tenerife side in the Basketball Champions League Final Four. Emmet Ryan watched the clock strike midnight on Cinderellaujgm This was not an aesthetically pleasing game of basketball. Nor […]
Virtus victorious over blunderous Bamberg
On the one hand there was a former European power looking to show it really was on the way back. On the other, there was a team that had reigned supreme in its homeland and now sought a first European final. It should have been a cracker, instead dire shooting from Brose Bamberg ensured that […]
I don’t feel like writing about basketball today
With the death of journalist Lyra McKee at the hands of so-called dissident Republicans, Emmet Ryan reflects on a few days he’d rather forget but knows it’s important not to We buried a friend today. An early train up to Belfast to grab one of the last seats at the back of the church a […]
A Look at the 2019-2020 Tennessee Basketball Schedule
Despite not going through its best period, Tennessee basketball is moving on and getting ready for the 2019-2020 season. Jordan Bone and Grant Williams are still expected to take some decisions soon, but thankfully, there are still things we know about the schedule of Tennessee basketball. Before you engage in some online sports betting on […]
Euroleague Playoff Preview
The playoffs are here and Euroleague has put together a couple of familiar pairings, one way too familiar, as 8 teams battle it out for a trip to the Final Four. Emmet Ryan breaks down the pairings For any of you who somehow have come across this piece and don’t know who is playing who […]
Who Are The Likely Europeans To Be Drafted Into The NBA?
The NBA is the pinnacle of the basketball world; with players from all over the globe idolising players from the biggest teams in the world. European leagues are improving; especially the Spanish league, but they will likely never reach the same level as America’s elite competition. The draft is something that not many Europeans […]
Requiem for a season
The SEF was a morgue on Friday night but Emmet Ryan went along to pay his respects. A dead rubber for Olympiacos, with no playoffs and doubts over what the rest of their season holds abounding, it was eerie in the home of a team that never looked like it would be in this situation […]
Calathes makes history to send Panathinaikos into the playoffs
It was never going to be easy but Panathinaikos really went all out on drama in the Euroleague regular season, leaving themselves with a must win game in the final round to decide their fate. Then Nick Calathes decided this, of all nights, was the one to end Euroleague’s greatest drought. Emmet Ryan was in […]
The way of the Warriors
The race was over, then it was alive again, then it was decided. Over the course of 2 games, starting 24 hours apart, the Irish Super League championship was decided in a combination of both the height of drama and the calm of a coronation. Emmet Ryan hit the road to take in all the, […]
The beat goes on
The last of our missives from the Kingdom sees Emmet Ryan return to Tralee during the run-in to the Irish Super League race as the unexpected league leaders faced a stern test from relegation battlers Neptune Saturday and Sunday see two huge games for the Tralee Warriors but that’s pretty much the norm. Every time […]