Lions maul Ongar in Under 17 Final

A DOMINANT display from Dublin Lions saw them outclass Ongar Chasers 65-47 in their DMBB Under-17 Cup Final in Oblate Hall on Sunday afternoon.

Led by a man-of-the-match performance from Kevin Anyanwu, who notched 20 points, two assists, and two steals, Lions launched into a mammoth early advantage and never looked like sacrificing it.

An intense start saw the Chasers defence hold firm against the early Lions onslaught inside, while they also broke the deadlock a minute in with a three from David Nugent.

Lions began to work the outside shot to good effect, and two consecutive makes from Callum Walsh saw the Clondalkin side take a lead they would not give up.

Indeed they would continue to score unanswered for the remainder of the first quarter, with Walsh adding another three before Sean Langan put up two of his own, one off Anyanwu’s steal, to help propel Lions 21-3 in front after the opening nine minutes.

Missed chances cost Ongar, Conor Thornton turning over from an open lay-up that led to a Samuel Mohamed bucket down the other end early on in the tie.

With two minutes gone Anyanwu scored his first points off his own rebound, and quickly took over, making another 11 before the close of the first half.

Ongar did improve towards the end of the quarter, with Thornton leading the way with an impressive three, but a 38-13 deficit at half time spelled domination from Lions.

Eight points in a row from Anyanwu counteracted an Okiki Fajana make as the Clondalkin side stretched their advantage even further.

Ongar closed up towards the end of the third, with an impressive buzzer-beating shot from Thornton capping off their best quarter, but Lions still lead 52-24.

The fourth was largely end-to-end, but still Chasers’ finishing on the day was not up to scratch, missing open looks and easy lay-ups that allowed Lions to comfortably maintain their advantage.

Langan managed his third three of the game off a beautiful move and assist from Anyanwu, who then scored his second steal of the game to go along with four final quarter points.

Upon his withdrawal with three minutes to go, Anyanwu received a standing ovation and chants of “MVP” from the Lions faithful and his own bench. Thornton continued his scoring exploits,managing four in the final two minutes to finish on 24 points, comfortably the top scorer for Chasers, but Lions eased through the final quarter to take the game 65-47.

DUBLIN LIONS: N. Kavanagh, K. Anyanwu, C. Walsh, S. Mohamed, E. Adeleye. SUBS: L. Kreidi-charet, J. Mazingu, A. Kelly, C. O’Shea, S. Langan, K. Harvey, S Drame.

ONGAR CHASERS: C. Thornton, D. Nugent, T. Fokas, G. Kingolo, O. Fajana.