The 2015–16 Irish Premier League season was the 43rd running of Basketball Ireland's premier men's basketball competition. The season featured 10 teams from across the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, with the regular season beginning on 3 October 2015 and ending on 6 March 2016. With a first-place finish and a 16–2 win–loss record, UCC Demons were crowned back-to-back league champions,[1][2][3] while 2016 National Cup honours went to Templeogue, who collected their first piece of silverware.[4][5] In the season finale Champions Trophy tournament, Demons took out the title for the fourth straight year.[6]
| 2015–16 Irish Premier League season | |
|---|---|
| League | Premier League |
| Sport | Basketball |
| Duration | 3 October 2015 – 6 March 2016 (Regular season) 12 March 2016 – 20 March 2016 (Champions Trophy) |
| Number of games | 18 |
| Number of teams | 10 |
| Regular season | |
| League champions | UCC Demons |
| Season MVP | Lehmon Colbert (UCC Demons) |
| Top scorer | Duane Johnson (DCU Saints) (26.2 ppg) |
| Tournaments | |
| Champions Trophy champions | UCC Demons |
| Champions Trophy runners-up | Killester |
| National Cup champions | Templeogue |
| National Cup runners-up | Swords Thunder |
Teams
edit| Team | Stadium | City/Area | Last season |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belfast Star | Methodist College | Belfast | 6th |
| DCU Saints | DCU Sports Complex | Glasnevin, Dublin | 8th |
| Éanna | Coláiste Éanna | Rathfarnham, Dublin | New |
| Killester | IWA Sports Hall | Clontarf, Dublin | 4th |
| Moycullen | Kingfisher, NUIG | Galway | New |
| Swords Thunder | ALSAA Sports Complex | Dublin Airport, Dublin | 2nd |
| Templeogue | Oblate Hall | Inchicore, Dublin | 3rd |
| UCC Demons | Mardyke Arena, UCC | Cork | 1st |
| UCD Marian | UCD Sports Centre | Belfield, Dublin | 5th |
| UL Eagles | PESS Building, UL | Limerick | 9th |
Regular season
editStandings
edit| # | Irish Premier League Regular Season Standings | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | PCT | PTS | |
| 1 | UCC Demons | 16 | 2 | 89 | 48 |
| 2 | Killester | 14 | 4 | 78 | 42 |
| 3 | Templeogue | 14 | 4 | 78 | 42 |
| 4 | UCD Marian | 10 | 8 | 56 | 30 |
| 5 | Swords Thunder | 9 | 9 | 50 | 27 |
| 6 | DCU Saints | 7 | 11 | 39 | 21 |
| 7 | Belfast Star | 6 | 12 | 33 | 18 |
| 8 | UL Eagles | 6 | 12 | 33 | 18 |
| 9 | Moycullen | 5 | 13 | 28 | 15 |
| 10 | Éanna | 3 | 15 | 17 | 9 |
Source: Basketball Ireland
Champions Trophy
editBracket
edit| Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||||||
| 1 | UCC Demons | 75 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | UCD Marian | 101 | 4 | UCD Marian | 71 | |||||||||
| KUBS** | 67 | 
| UCC Demons | 82 | ||||||||||
| Killester | 77 | |||||||||||||
| 2 | Killester | 94 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Templeogue | 86 | 3 | Templeogue | 76 | |||||||||
| Maree* | 73 | |||||||||||||
*National League Division 1 champions.[7]
**National League Division 1 runners-up.[7]
Quarter-finals
edit12 March 2016
16:30 GMT |
| Maree | 73–86 | Templeogue |
| Pts: Cathal Finn (18) | Pts: Michael Bonaparte (34) |
Calasanctius College, Oranmore
|
12 March 2016
20:00 GMT |
| KUBS | 67–101 | UCD Marian |
| Pts: Jonathan Riles (19) | Pts: Dustan Moreira (24) |
Carroll Arena, Greendale, Dublin
|
Source: Basketball Ireland
Semi-finals
edit19 March 2016
15:00 GMT |
| Killester | 94–76 | Templeogue |
| Scoring by quarter: 26–21, 24–24, 19–18, 25–13 | ||
| Pts: Jermaine Turner (25) Rebs: Jermaine Turner (16) Asts: Ciaran Roe (6) |
Pts: Michael Bonaparte (28) Rebs: Michael Bonaparte (13) Asts: Tied (5) | |
The Watershed, Kilkenny
|
19 March 2016
17:00 GMT |
| UCC Demons | 75–71 | UCD Marian |
| Scoring by quarter: 23–18, 19–19, 22–22, 11–12 | ||
| Pts: Lehmon Colbert (35) Rebs: Lehmon Colbert (17) Asts: Kyle Hosford (5) |
Pts: Dustan Moreira (17) Rebs: Dustan Moreira (11) Asts: Barry Drumm (8) | |
The Watershed, Kilkenny
|
Source: Basketball Ireland, Basketball Ireland
Final
edit20 March 2016
16:00 GMT |
| UCC Demons | 82–77 | Killester |
| Scoring by quarter: 16–15, 24–26, 26–14, 16–22 | ||
| Pts: Lehmon Colbert (27) Rebs: Lehmon Colbert (16) Asts: Colin O'Reilly (10) |
Pts: Paul Dick (22) Rebs: Paul Dick (12) Asts: Tied (6) | |
National Cup
editRound 1 (2 legs)
edit4 December 2015 (Series 1)
|
| UCC Demons | 88–67 | UL Eagles |
| UCC Demons win Series 1 on aggregate (170–120). | ||
Mardyke Arena, Cork
|
5 December 2015 (Series 2)
|
| DCU Saints | 67–80 | UCD Marian |
| UCD Marian win Series 2 on aggregate (196–152). | ||
DCU Sports Complex, Dublin
|
5 December 2015 (Series 3)
|
| Templeogue | 79–78 | Moycullen |
| Templeogue win Series 3 on aggregate (159–148). | ||
Oblate Hall, Dublin
|
5 December 2015 (Series 4)
|
| Éanna | 86–92 | Swords Thunder |
| Swords Thunder win Series 4 on aggregate (170–145). | ||
Coláiste Éanna, Dublin
|
5 December 2015 (Series 5)
|
| Killester | 100–51 | Belfast Star |
| Killester win Series 5 on aggregate (174–137). | ||
IWA-Clontarf, Dublin
|
Round 2 (1 leg)
editWinner of Series 2 vs Winner of Series 4
Semi-finals
editWinner of Series 1 vs Winner of Round 2
Winner of Series 5 vs Winner of Series 3
Final
edit30 January 2016
20:00 GMT |
| Swords Thunder | 75–78 | Templeogue |
| Scoring by quarter: 16–24, 23–4, 12–29, 24–21 | ||
| Pts: Isaac Westbrooks (15) Rebs: Dan Nelms (13) Asts: Isaac Westbrooks (7) |
Pts: Michael Bonaparte (21) Rebs: Jason Killeen (10) Asts: Sean Flood (5) | |
Source: Basketball Ireland, Comortais
Awards
editPlayer of the Month
edit| Month | Player | Team | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|
| October | Michael Bonaparte | Templeogue | [8] |
| November | Lehmon Colbert | UCC Demons | [9] |
| December | Duane Johnson | DCU Saints | [10] |
| January | Michael Bonaparte | Templeogue | [11] |
| February | Jermaine Turner | Killester | [12] |
Coach of the Month
edit| Month | Player | Team | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|
| October | Mark Keenan | Templeogue | [8] |
| November | Colin O'Reilly | UCC Demons | [9] |
| December | Neal McCotter | Belfast Star | [10] |
| January | Mark Keenan | Templeogue | [11] |
| February | Brian O'Malley | Killester | [12] |
Statistics leaders
editStats as of the end of the regular season[13][14]
| Category | Player | Team | Stat |
|---|---|---|---|
| Points per game | Duane Johnson | DCU Saints | 26.2 |
| Rebounds per game | Duane Johnson | DCU Saints | 18.7 |
| Assists per game | Isaac Westbrooks | Swords Thunder | 9.1 |
| Steals per game | Alexander Zurn | UCD Marian | 4.6 |
| Blocks per game | Alexander Zurn | UCD Marian | 3.6 |
Regular season
edit- Player of the Year: Lehmon Colbert (UCC Demons)[15]
- Young Player of the Year: Sean Flood (Templeogue)
- Coach of the Year: Brian O'Malley (Killester)
- All-Star First Picks:
- Michael Bonaparte (Templeogue)[16]
- Lehmon Colbert (UCC Demons)
- Duane Johnson (DCU Saints)
- Jermaine Turner (Killester)
- Shawn Vanzant (Belfast Star)
- All-Star Second Picks:
- Staats Battle (UL Eagles)
- Paul Dick (Killester)
- Sean Flood (Templeogue)
- Dan James (UCD Marian)
- Isaac Westbrooks (Swords Thunder)
- All-Star Third Picks:
- Paul Cummins (Templeogue)
- Conor Grace (Templeogue)
- Jason Killeen (Templeogue)
- Dustan Moreira (UCD Marian)
- Mārtiņš Provizors (DCU Saints)
References
edit- ^ "C&S UCC DEMONS RETAIN MEN'S PREMIER LEAGUE TITLE". BlueDemonsBC.com. 28 February 2016. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
- ^ "TROPHY PRESENTATION FOR LEAGUE CHAMPIONS ON SUNDAY". BlueDemonsBC.com. 3 March 2016. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
- ^ "C&S UCC DEMONS ARE CROWNED 2016 PREMIER LEAGUE WINNERS". BlueDemonsBC.com. 6 March 2016. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
- ^ Blake, Ben (30 January 2016). "Templeogue pip GCD Swords Thunder in dramatic Men's National Cup final". the42.ie. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
- ^ McGee, Tony (1 February 2016). "Templeogue hold off late Swords surge in National Cup final". IrishTimes.com. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
- ^ "DEMONS CLAIM END OF SEASON CHAMPIONS TROPHY". BasketballIreland.ie. 20 March 2016. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
- ^ a b "PLAYOFF AND CHAMPIONS TROPHY FIXTURES CONFIRMED". BasketballIreland.ie. 8 March 2016. Retrieved 9 March 2016.
- ^ a b "OCTOBER PLAYERS AND COACHES OF THE MONTH". BasketballIreland.ie. 24 November 2015. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
- ^ a b "NOVEMBER 2015 AWARDS". BasketballIreland.ie. 16 December 2015. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
- ^ a b "DECEMBER AWARDS 2015". BasketballIreland.ie. 7 January 2016. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
- ^ a b "JANUARY PLAYER AND COACH OF THE MONTH AWARDS". BasketballIreland.ie. 15 February 2016. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
- ^ a b "PLAYER AND COACH OF THE MONTH AWARDS - FEBRUARY 2016". BasketballIreland.ie. 8 March 2016. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
- ^ "Basketball Ireland – Player Stats". BasketballIreland.ie. Archived from the original on 9 March 2016. Retrieved 9 March 2016.
- ^ "Basketball Ireland – League Stats". BasketballIreland.ie. Archived from the original on 9 March 2016. Retrieved 9 March 2016.
- ^ "BASKETBALL IRELAND ANNUAL AWARDS 2016". BasketballIreland.ie. 13 June 2016. Retrieved 13 June 2016.
- ^ "BASKETBALL IRELAND 2016 ALL-STARS REVEALED". BasketballIreland.ie. 16 March 2016. Retrieved 16 March 2016.