U18 Women - Kats v Fury

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Kats came up against Fury in their first game in three weeks. This was going to be the last time these teams would meet in the league this season.

From the start Kats put Fury under pressure forcing turnovers which resulted in nice fast break lay-ups. Fury were not going to let that stop them and responded with some close range baskets from effective cuts in offence.

Kats took a time out and regrouped, after which, defence in the half court set improved and continued to do so for the remainder of the half. Half time score, Kats 29 - Fury 12.

Fury came out in the second half with a change in defence. Against their zone Kats became a little static at times, but after some team communicating, offence began to flow and better ball movement was seen. The inside players worked well together as did the perimeter guards.

With sharp passing and good penetration we saw some nice basketball from the girls. Kats did a great job of winning a number of defensive rebounds which allowed us to get the ball up the floor quickly for more fast break opportunities. Final score - Kats 65 Fury 29.

Kats next game is against St Mirren on Friday night at Porty, 7.50pm tip.

1994 to 2014 - Tracey still on the winning team

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After the fantastic success of the Kats in this year's Scottish Cup, some of the more senior members of the club recalled that it was exactly 20 years ago that the Kats first became Scottish Cup champions.

If you would like to read more about this year's Kool Kat's win there's a full match report on the BasketballScotland website or why not check out the game statistics.

You can also read below the thoughts of two of our club members who were involved that day 20 years ago! See how many people you can spot in the photos of the day, all those years ago. Also just added is a little note from the coach in 1994 - Toni Szifris.

Unfortunately, the U16 Men were not so lucky in their Cup Final, going down bravely to a tough St Mirren team. You can read the statistics for this match here.

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High-Res Version

By Brian Findlay

In 1994 Tracey Phillips was part of a very young (Beefeater) Kool Kats team who took on the might of Livingston SW sponsored by MIM in the Scottish Cup Final. For Kats, it was their first Final and the game was at Ainslie Park Leisure Centre, in front of a large crowd on both sides of the Hall.

Toni Szifris was Kats coach then and his daughter Kara, Joanna Sutherland (Sandy's daughter), Charlotte Nelson, Vivien Ross (who now has a son at Porty) and Tracey were the mainstays of the team. They were all under 20 years old and had only been in Div 1 (yes, there were 2 Senior Women leagues then) for a couple of short seasons, and their excitement was huge.

The BasketballScotland game report at the time detailled the 3-pointer scored by Joanna with 4 secs to go in overtime for Kats to take the Cup by 1point.

Dr Tracey Phillips had been a big part of Kats since early in their history and last Sunday (2nd Feb 2014), 20 years later, she played another big part in their latest Scottish Cup success when they beat St Maurice's Rocks at the Lagoon LC in Paisley. Her encouragement in offence and calming words in defence have brought out the best in players like Hannah, Rose and the rest of the SW squad.

She will say the Cup win was a team effort, and so it was, but Tracey is a role model for all our young players at the Club, who could do much worse than emulate her enthusiasm and work ethic. No wonder she is still on the winning team !!

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By Tracey Phillips

My recollection from the '94 final is a bit patchy. I do remember feeling very excited and nervous. I think we had made it to the final before this but had lost, so this gave it an extra edge. Also, the venue of Ainslie Park was one that we hadn't played in before as finals were typically held at Meadowbank.

And of course, the final piece of the puzzle was our opponents - Livingston - they had been the dominant club for many years with GB and Scottish internationalists at all positions. Just 4 years previous, we were drawn against them in the opening rounds of the cup, and they handed us a near 100 point thrashing with their start-to-finish full court press. We never forgot that encounter and it served as a great motivator for the final in '94.

In terms of the game, the main things I recall off the floor was a noisy crowd crammed in to limited space. On the floor, the two things that stick out in my mind were toward the end of the game. Livingston had the last possession of the game in regular time and one of their forwards drove, I fouled her, and time expired. I wanted the ground to swallow me up. The game was tied and here I'd given them the chance to win it with free throws.

As it happened, Lady Luck was smiling down on us and they missed both taking the game to overtime. Well into the overtime period we were down by 2 and staring defeat in the face. It felt as if everything was in slow motion, the shot clock is winding down, we're down 2, no time-outs left, passes in and out and it comes to Joanna. Just on the 3-point line, she peers down steps back and releases the 3 pointer. Pause. Swoosh. Sheer delight.

Then 20 years later, find myself fortunate enough to be playing in another cup final. Obviously have more experience to draw on compared to years past, but still get the butterflies and excitement inherent to these big occasions.

Battles with Rocks remind me of the tussles we had with Livingston, different players yes, but the same desires and efforts to win and outperform your opposition demonstrated by both sides. And this is what keeps me wanting to come back for more.

Lady Luck is still shining down on me, and I'm just grateful I've had the privilege to be a member of some excellent teams and had the support of great team mates. Long may it continue.

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Back row l-r: Vivien Ross, Tracy Phillips, Jenny Duff, Biff, Toni, Vlasta Jamnicky.
Front row l-r: Louise McGregor, Charlotte Nelson, Lisa Thompson, Kara Szifris, Sarah Harris.

By Toni Szifris

The starting 5 was Kara Szfris at point Joanna Sutherland and Tracey Phillips at forward and Vlasta Jamnicky and Jenny Duff inside. Lisa Thomson and Viv Ross came off the bench followed by a short spell from Charlotte Nelson, who was just a kid, and Louise McGregor. The average age of the team was 19 which to my knowledge is the youngest ever.

This team changed the face of women's basketball in Scotland with their full court game with variations on presses and total fast break. All the other teams had to learn to play against pressure. I see over the good years that have followed that this is still what wins games for the Kats.

Jo's final 3 pointer was not all chance. The forwards were taught to shift round for the 3 pointer to the spot where the guard penetrated the 3 point line. That was what happened, penetration and kick from Kara and the glory shot from Jo.

Just for interest the Kool Kats name came from our first home venue during the teachers' strikes in the early eighties when we could not coach at school. We went to the Jack Kane Centre and called the team the Jack Kane Kool Kats which we thought had a bit of a ring to it.

I must congratulate Brian for being a six time cup winner and Ben for his five with the Kat's and others previously with the All Blacks.

U14 Boys Scottish Cup‏ - Kings v Blaze

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First round for U/14 boys in the Scottish Cup started with a game against local rivals Blaze.

The game started quite nervously with both side missing baskets in the first few minutes. After the nerves settled Kings started to shine with baskets from Rory, Fergal and Stuart to take the first quarter 11 - 4.

With the rules slightly different from RDL games we started to sub in players throughout the half and Finlay, Daniel and Blair started to make their mark on this game. Kings going into the half time 25 - 16 up.

The second half started with good defence and the fast breaks began. Owen, Kyle Craig and Thomas were all fighting for the ball and resulted in some very nice turnovers and baskets to boot, 3rd quarter ended 40 -31 in Kings favour.

Blaze player Lorcan was a constant thorn in our defence with a personal tally of 23 points, more work required there. The 4th quarter saw all players on the court and powerful display from Stuart and Blair with Daniel hitting a 2 plus 1 at the end saw Kings finish with a 59 - 40 win.

This win was a shared win, with all the players contributing to a great game and some very positive coaching from Neil and Holly (I may be redundant!). Well done all and thanks to the parents who as always support our kids.

Match Reports - Sunday 19th Jan 2014

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Senior Women win at Rocks to open up the League again

Kats Senior Women had a hard fought victory over St Maurice's Rocks at Cumbernauld on Sunday by 64 - 56, inflicting Rocks first defeat of the season.

Following their big points win last weekend the Senior Women had to work much harder for their victory over Rocks. Coach Gunn was able to run 9 deep on his bench and managed to freshen up those on court throughout the game.

Solid contributions from an experienced group of players saw the team through to a victory which means the National League title is still up for grabs. Hannah with 20 and Emma with 11, led the scorers, but good contributions from several others means the team is not reliant on one player.

Junior Women still on course

The Kats Junior Women had previously continued their winning way with a 35 - 51 result against their Rocks counterparts. Lots of energetic play in both defence and offence saw the team never really troubled, giving them their 2nd victory of the weekend.

They defeated Tayside Musketeers away on Friday night by 43 - 55. Again the pace in the team was crucial as they ran the floor against their opponents.

The Junior Women are now 10 and 0 in the League and playing consistently well in every game. They will be looking forward with confidence to the final round of league games, facing all their opponents once more before Easter.

Cadette Women lose to Rocks

The Cadette girls lost in the 3rd game of the day on Sunday. With 6 games left to play, Coach Gillies will be targeting victories against Fury, Polonia, Highland and Tayside to move her team up the League before the play-offs.

Senior Women get it together at last

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After stuttering a little in the first half of the season, Kats Senior Women put it all together and ran Tayside Musketeers off the court last Saturday 11/01/2014.

At last the girls played like a team and shot the eyes out of the basket with 57% from 2-point range. They ran the floor effortlessly and put away some delightful fast breaks.

With 10 players scoring it really was a team effort. Hannah led all scorers with 25 points and was back to something like her best. Leanne netted a season high of 19 points, Rose hit 13 and Emma 12. Sarah with 9 , Kirsten and Tracey with 8 each showed that points came from all over the floor. Trace made some great passes and gave lots of help and encouragement in defence.

The final score of 102 - 44 begs the question of "how did we lose to them by 2 earlier in the season?". Lets hope we can play like this for the remainder of the season.

Meanwhile, The Junior Women had a good win against Tayside also and have now beaten every other team in the League. They remain undefeated and on course for a great season.

Unfortunately the Cadette Women had a disappointing loss in the first game of the day and did nothing to help Coach Kara Gilles' recovery from illness which caused her to miss the game.

Match reports - 14th & 15th December

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Kats U18 Women V St Mirren

Defence turns the tide for Juniors

The last game before the Christmas break for the junior women against St Mirren placed them in uncharted territory, finding themselves 11-0 down after 7 minutes of the first quarter. The opposition were quick out of the blocks and executed well in the early phases. Kats regrouped following a timeout and finally managed to break their duck finishing the first period 13-6 behind.

Refusing to dwell on the deficit, Kats showed impressive intensity and coherence in defence and created multiple fast-break opportunities which they capitalised on and turned the tables on the Saints with affairs all square at half-time.

More of the same followed from Kats in the second half and they carved out a double point lead with 5 minutes to go. As expected, Saints went on a run of their own and cut the deficit to 6 but Kats stood fast remaining composed under the pressure and converting to put the game beyond the reach of the Paisely club, final score 61-53.

Kats next game will be against Arbroath at Portobello.

Kings Senior Men v Glasgow University

This was a game that was important for a number of reasons, firstly we needed a confidence boosting win, particularly after our last gasp, 1 point win at Portobello earlier in the season. Secondly, the coaching staff were looking for a strong performance ahead of the upcoming semi-final against St Mirren.

1st Quarter - after starting slowly in the first few minutes where the University took an early need, we ramped up the defensive intensity and went on a run to take the lead midway through the quarter, with Garreth, Simon and Menelaos combining to give us a 17 – 9 lead at the end.

2nd Quarter - as we increased the lead early in the 2nd, we were able to give the starting unit a break and their places were ably taken by Audrius, Paddy, Mike and Wojtiech adding 13 points and extending our lead to 17 points. Half time 36 – 19.

3rd Quarter - Glasgow University led by Captain Calum Nicol tried hard to keep the game close in the second half but with two of their main players unavailable to play, the Senior Mens’s stronger bench continued to wear the students down. The highlights being 3’s from Neil and Craig and a great breakaway dunk from Audrius, extending our lead to 26 points at the end of the quarter 58 – 32.

4th Quarter - this quarter followed the same pattern as the first and had the same quarter score (17 – 9), resulting in a final score of 75 – 41.

In summary, we achieved what we were looking for from the game, albeit against a weakened University team and looking forward to this Friday’s Scottish Cup Semi Final.

U14 Boys Regional Development League

Game time again on Sunday and first up was the derby, Kings "A" against Kings "B" with David Milne kindly subbing in for Holly and Neil who are both on exam study.

With a fast pace the A's took a lead early on and continue to increase during the game, Kyle, Owen and Daniel were in full flow but were unable to pull back the lead and A's won comfortably.

Next game up was B's against Blaze A who had a mix of A and B teams. Our boys worked so hard and the game was in their grasp but some dubious calls lead to losing by 1. This is a game in which Kyle, Owen & Daniel shone and young Juan from blaze was their top player.

Daniel was superb inside whilst Owen and Kyle were shooting from anywhere, the rest of the young ones worked so hard to assist in a great game which was fast and furious.

Game 3 was against the unbeaten Stirling Knight's. Straight from the start we ran a tight defence and Rory and Blair made their mark going 10-2 up. Really great defence was the message of the day with superb work from Finlay who picked up 4 fouls in the quarter but stopped agile and quick Lewis McGlasson from scoring single figures in the same quarter.

We came out in the second half with great defence from Rory & Blair and shooting from Stuart, superbly assisted from Fergal and Lewis - all making their mark on the game. A great victory against the league leaders to show what this team is capable of.

Both teams played to what they are capable of and well done to all, a great finish to the year.

Match reports - Friday 6th & Saturday 7th December

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KATS Senior Women squeeze past Polonia in local derby.

Looking to bounce back after a disappointing loss last weekend, Kool Kats Senior women took on Polonia at Portobello on Friday night. A good crowd with many of the Club's u/12s along supporting saw a close encounter which Kats edged 62 - 54. With Hannah, Nicole and some of the Junior Women unavailable it was left to 4 Cadette Women to complete the bench for Kats.

A competitive first quarter was taken by Kats 14 - 11 with the help of some points from Leanne and a further smaller gap in Q2 gave Kats a 4 point lead at the half.

Lauren came up with her best shooting performance so far in the third, but Polonia came back with Beth Mackie leading the way for them and slotting some 3-pointers, to give them the lead by two going into the last quarter.

Kats worked hard in the last quarter with players on the court doing the job and making subbing difficult for coach Gunn. Rose was very direct, pulling fouls and hitting some lay-ups to help stretch away to a 20 - 10 score for the period and give Kats the win.

A typical hard fought derby game, not pretty on occasion, but a win is a win even when it's ugly !!

Beth Mackie led all scorers with 20 points for Polonia with Rose netting 16 and Lauren 13 for Kats, who also had a handful of other players making solid contributions.

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Kats U18 Women V Polonia Phoenix

Kats pitched up at their home turf on Saturday to take on Polonia in their second meet of the season. Due to injury and other commitments Kats saw themselves with 10 players stripped.

It was a slow start to the game with both teams not hitting double figures in the first quarter. Kats executed transition well but at times could not finish.

The second quarter saw Kats step up at both ends of the floor. With all players hitting the court in the first half we were able to keep a freshness to our defence and our intensity improved. Pressure and good rebounding allowed Kats to produce quick outlets leading to fast break baskets. Going into the half Kats were leading 23-9.

Phoenix came out determined in the second half with pressure defence, however Kats kept their Kool and dealt with this intensity well. Good ball movement in offence saw Kats produce some nice teamwork plays. Towards the end of the fourth quarter Kats let their defence slip slightly and allowed Phoenix to drive down the middle of their key for easy scoring opportunities. This was quickly shut down and Kats replied with two fast break scores.

Final score – 50-27

Match reports - Saturday 23rd & Sunday 24th November

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Kats U18 Women v Falkirk Fury

Kats stand firm against Fury

The Saturday morning match up for the U18 women against Fury signalled the second meeting of the season for these two sides, the first encounter won by Kats. Both sides were slightly slow out the blocks with a series of turnovers, fouls and missed opportunities.

Going in to the second quarter, however, Kats had opened up a small lead. Improved play through a mixture of defensive stops, steals, and fast breaks allowed Kats to build on their lead and were a dozen up going into the half time stoppage.

With all players contributing, Kats further capitalised on their lead and at the mid point of the 3rd period were 20 ahead. Fury continued to battle on and put together a few runs to cut the eventual margin to 8. Kats held off the challenge, however, and saw out the game for a good victory, final score 61 - 53.

Kings U14 Boys RDL

RDL time again on Sunday saw the U/14 B playing in the two toughest matches to date against Stirling Knights and Falkirk Fury at Tynecastle High School.

First up were Knights who have a tall powerful team and played a strong inside game - our players did extremely well to contain them but the size and physical strength of Stirling was a wee bit too much even for Duracell and his Bunny partner. Second game was against Fury who were also big and powerful and saw us lose eventually by 20, really good effort by all and the boys done well for back to back tough Games.

After a sprint to the other side of town we lined up the A team at Holy Rood against Blaze A. The boys played very well and were too strong for the Blaze boys. Rory took control of the game from the start along with Blair, Findlay, Stuart and Fergal which allowed the younger players to be involved in securing the win.

Next up were West Lothian Wolves and Neil took control to secure the second win of the day with the younger ones beginning to put their mark on the game against a bigger team but our depth of players was too much for them in the end.

Well done to both A and B teams

Kings U16 Men v Dunfermline Reign

The Kings Cadet Men welcomed a Reign side, who were unbeaten coming into this game, to a very busy Portobello High School. Both teams were confident and the game was set up to be a classic.

Dunfermline starting the game well, going up 12-2 early in the 1st quarter before Kings started a small fight back, bringing the score back to within 7pts, 18-25, at the end of the 1st.

Some good defence and some foul trouble for Dunfermline allowed Kings to take control of the game, led by Captain Kyle Jimenez, and lead for the 1st time in the game, midway through the 2nd quarter. After multiple changes of lead and possession, the half-time score was a fairly justified draw at 41-41.

The 3rd quarter was very repetitive with the Kings providing some excellent build up play before failing to handle the speed and movement of Dunfermline’s guards. Some timely shots from point-guard Konrad Kantorski, allowed Kings to hold on to the lead at the end of the 3rd but only by 3pts, the score 63-60.

The Kings continued to increase the score early in the 4th, taking the lead to double digits through some consistent shooting from Jimenez, who finished the game with 34pts (11 from 12 inside and 3 from 5 outside).

However, Dunfermline continued to play strongly and started to eat away at the score and found themselves with the lead with 2 minutes to play.

The score stayed within 3pts for most of the 2 minutes before two quick stops moved the score to 6pts in Reigns favour. A late 5th foul from Kyle Jimenez to stop the clock was not enough to change the fate of the game. Final Score: Kings 79-85 Reign.

Kings Senior Men v Dunfermline Reign

This was the last game of another super Saturday at Portobello and we picked up where we left off against Boroughmuir last weekend.

The first quarter was all about defence and another ruthless display combined with some fabulous fast break offence resulted in a 21 point lead (27 – 6) at the end.

This meant that we could get all 12 players into the game in the 1st half, though Dunfermline took the opportunity to step up their play and winning the quarter 17 – 16 for a 43 – 23 Kings lead.

A key objective of this game was to make sure we used it as proper preparation for our game against Falkirk next weekend. As a consequence, a much improved 3rd quarter (21 – 17) gave a platform for a final quarter where Kings won 18 – 6 for a final score of 82 – 46.

Kings Senior Men v Blaze – Scottish Cup Quarter Final

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This game gave the senior men the opportunity to avenge the early season league defeat and would also be a measure of the progress made with this season’s new group.

The major analysis from the 1st game was that if we defended more robustly then we had a much greater chance of winning and so it proved.

The first quarter set the tone for the game with everybody stepping up to minimise defensive penetration and limiting Boroughmuir to two points. We also moved the ball well in transition and also in our half court sets, ending the quarter with a 15 – 2 lead.

The second quarter started in a similar fashion until midway through when the game stopped whilst Boroughmuir player Rob Jansson needed treatment for what turned out to be a torn rotator cuff injury. Both teams then struggled to find any rhythm during the rest of the quarter, with the highlight being a couple of thunderous dunks by Audrius. Score at half-time 27-10.

The third quarter had more offensive action with both teams scoring more freely, with Craig Reilly hitting a couple of threes and Simon beginning to get into his rhythm. End of Quarter 47 – 23.

The final quarter belonged to Simon as he continued to hit from both inside and outside and scoring 10 of his 24 point total. Final score 63-39 to Kings.

As noted in the Evening News, our ruthless defence in the first half was the significant reason for this win and will need to be at the same level when we face St Mirren in the semi final.

Match reports - Friday 8th & Sunday 10th November

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Kats U18 Women v Glasgow Rocks

Kats come up short in cup tie

The junior girls were on the road for their Friday night Scottish Cup quarter-final tie against the Rocks in a very warm St Maurice's venue.

A slow start saw the Kats down by 8 after only 4 minutes, but following a series of steals and defensive stops were able to claw back the deficit. Turnovers were a feature for both sides meaning neither club could really establish a lead, and at half time Rocks had a 5 point advantage.

Kats came out determined in the 3rd quarter, capitalising on some sloppy Rocks passing and cutting the lead to 2, forcing a Rocks time out. Having made adjustments, Rocks took care of the ball better and continued with their defensive pressure. Up until midway through the 4th quarter there was nothing between the teams but on the back of a couple of steals and converted lay-ups rocks began to pull away. Despite their efforts, Kats were unable to bridge the gap and lost 71-62.

Though a disappointing loss, Kats are far from out, focussing their attentions now on league and play-off performances.

Kats U16 Women v Polonia

The Cadette Women started their Scottish Cup campaign this year with a short trip away to Polonia at the Crags. After a promising second half performance the previous weekend at Rocks, we were hoping to maintain a good level of intensity in our defence and improve our shooting percentage at the other end.

A slow but steady first quarter saw Kats dominate the rebounding battle at both ends but switched off occasionally to let their player get to the basket which meant that they only led 15-11 after the first quarter.

With all players hitting the court in the first half we were able to keep a freshness to our defence and our intensity improved, with excellent hustle plays leading to fast break baskets, meaning we were able to go in at half time up 34-15.

With a good lead established this was the time to try out new sets in preparation for some tough upcoming league matches. The girls looked comfortable in their full court defence and everyone took real confidence from the turnovers that were forced and points that we converted as we won the quarter 28-12.

The final period saw the 6 Polonia players run out of steam as we were able to get the ball up the floor early before their defence was set. Our footwork at the other end got a bit lazy but we were still able to come out winners, with a final score of 70-44, and progress to the next round. We had 10 different scorers, led by Niamh Walker with 21 points.

Lothian League Kings v Dunfermline Reign - 6th Nov‏

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Kings Reign Supreme over Dunfermline 75-46‏

It was a very chilly night in the hall for this one but that didn’t stop Mike Murray heating up with some excellent play to get the Kings off to a commanding lead and finishing the 1st Quarter 23-9. Steven Turnbull was forced of with an ankle injury early on but still managed a handful of rebounds and 6 points. Piotr Jagodzinski came on for Steven Turnbull and immediately made an impact and continued to do so as the game went on at both ends of the floor, this meant that the game plan never changed and Dunfermline just could not stop the Kings scoring.

In the 2nd half the Kings came out strong and throughout the half Mike Murray and Craig Nicol made a number of steals and converted on the fast breaks for some easy scores. The game was finished off just it started with a strong defence only giving up 4 points in the last 5 minutes and that good defence turned into some good offence scoring 11 points in the final 5 minutes with a late arrival to the game Steven Dickson picking up 7 points.

A great performance all around with the new look Lothian League men looking like they are a force in the league and with 3 games before the Christmas break will be looking to close out the year challenging Blaze for top spot.

Top Scorers:

• Mike Murray - 19
• Piotr Jagodzinski - 18
• Liam Kelly, Steven Dickson - 7

Regional Development League 3/11 - U14 Boys

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RDL time again and the U/14 boys were involved in 4 games

The day started well with the Boys "B" team securing a convincing win against Blaze "B", all the boys played at least 1/4 of the game with most adding their names to the score sheet. Great displays from Kyle, Daniel and Owen all who helped the younger players get involved.

Game 2 for the B team was against a taller team from West Lothian. After a poor start we finally found the basket and after being behind for the most of the game it was good to come away with a 1 point win after full time. A hard fought game.

The A team had by far the toughest challenge in the RDL to date, Falkirk were in top form and pulled away with an early lead which we could not match on the day and were deserving winners.

The next A game was against a well drilled Stirling Knights and a poor start in the first quarter loosing it 17-6. We started to play a bit better with both Blair and Rory working well inside, good "D" allowed us to turn the ball over but alas as ijn the previous game we could not buy a shot to go in, loosing the game by 13. Well done to Stirling and time for us to reflect and come back stronger for the next set of RDL's.

A big mention to Charlie who played the last game with a fractured finger and hope he will be ready for the next rounds.

Kings v Pleasance Lothian League 30th October

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Pleasance @ Lothian League Kings (Chairman's Cup Last 16)‏

The first cup game of the season started with a foul and free throws for the visitors. Defence was the order of the day with the Kings closing out the first quarter with a commanding lead which continued throughout the game as the team never allowed Pleasance to score into double digits in any of the four quarters.

A few steals from Craig Nicol provided some easy layup opportunities towards the end which he took with ease. Points were going on the board from around the team and showed that there was a real team effort tonight where everyone was in sync which was evident with some of the fast breaks that helped pick up some easy baskets.

The Kings move on to the Quarter Finals on a high with the prospect of playing Boroughmuir Blaze - if they can get past their own last 16 match up.

All in all a great team performance which was lead by Graeme Cameron who managed the floor well and put up 9 points and a handful of rebounds. Final score 51-26 to the Kings.

Kings scorers:

• Liam Kelly - 12 Points
• Troy Batten - 9 Points
• Graeme Cameron - 9 Points

Match Reports - 26th and 27th October

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Kats U18 Women v Glasgow Rocks

Kats fight hard to take the win over Rocks

Kats juniors stepped onto their home court on Saturday for the first time this season to play Glasgow Rocks. Knowing this was not going to be an easy game, Kats needed to work hard to continue their winning streak.

The first half showed both teams trading baskets throughout, with no team taking a big lead. Glasgow Rocks were physical from the word go and did not allow Kats to get any easy baskets. Rebounds were lacking in the Kats stats but a change in defence saw an improvement in this department. The front of our zone worked hard to cover and put pressure on Rock’s shooters, while good rotation from the back triangle produced no uncontested lay-ups. Quick outlets from our rebounders allowed Kats’s forwards to get on the end of some fast breaks. At the end of the first half Kats lead 27-24.

In the second half, pressure defence from Rocks’s forwards and guards made it difficult for clear passes to be made and at times resulted in turnovers. Kats fought back from this and began to create more space for themselves while taking care of the ball. Crucial rebounds and put backs towards the final minutes of the game allowed Kats to be level with seconds to go. A last offence score saw Kats up by 2 with 12 seconds to go. A final steal from Kats gave Rocks no time to reply.

Final score Kats 58 – Rocks 56

Top scorers: Ciara and Rowan 15, Shannon 14.

Kings Senior Men v Glasgow University

Another interesting game for the senior men, with yet another different starting line-up due to Audrius’s late call off due to illness, Steven Dickson (working), Matt Kruczynski (coaching course) and also a buzzer beater 3-pointer to win by a point.

1st Quarter: Could be best described as starting slowly and not getting going ( we also lost Menelaos to a pulled hamstring after 5 minutes), as we again did a good defensive job but failed to capitalise on offence with the score after 5 minutes a titanic 2-2 , with Glasgow Uni leading 14 – 6 at the end of the quarter.

2nd Quarter: Continued defensive pressure and a scoring run mid-way through the quarter sparked by back to back 3’s by Craig Reilly saw the scores tie at 26 – 26 at half time.

3rd Quarter: A poor defensive effort saw Glasgow, led by John Bustin, take an 11pt lead into the final quarter 52 – 41.

4th Quarter: Kings slowly ate in at Glasgow’s lead in small bites throughout the quarter with Simon coming alive to score 14 of his game high 18, including some key free throws. Conversely, Glasgow were missing free throws including the 1st of 2 with 21 seconds to go leaving the score at 64-62 for the university. After a time out, we inbounded the ball eventually finding its way to Garreth, who with 6 seconds to go ‘banked’ a three pointer to take a one point lead. Glasgow managed to advance the ball but could not get a shot off.

Final Score 65 – 64

Kings scorers: Simon 18, Garreth 15, Craig 14

Match reports - 19th and 20th October

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Kats Senior Women v Polonia

Kool Kats enjoyed a resounding victory over local rivals and current league champions Polonia Phoenix at the weekend. Helped in part by the return of former player and Olympian, Rose Anderson, the Edinburgh club was able to record their first big win of the season.

A packed Crags sports centre saw Ben Gunn’s team start with Emma, Lauren, Tracey, Leanne and Nicole. They soon steamed and were able to stop Polonia from scoring for the first 5 minutes and 42 seconds of the quarter.

The introduction of Anderson and several juniors in the second quarter did not hold Kats back and they swept into a 20-point lead. Although the shooting percentage wasn’t as good as it could be, the inter-play between players was excellent as was the defence. The welcome return of Hannah Peacock gave the forwards and guards a big target to aim for and she didn’t disappoint.

Half time saw Kats leading although there were signs that Polonia were not just going to roll over.

The third quarter saw Kats return to their initial starters and again begin to put heavy pressure on the Phoenix defence. With Leanne and Emma dictating the game, fast breaks were aplenty. The introduction of Elspeth Simpson did little to slow down this speed as she continued where the others had left off.

The fourth quarter was something of a formality for the Edinburgh club- and again junior players were given their opportunity. Shannon, Ciara, Elspeth and Rowan played like senior players- even more fantastic considering they had been involved in an earlier game. Rose stepped back onto court as a Kool Kat and showed exactly why she is an Olympian. Final score was 72-30 for Kats.

This was an excellent result for Kats who can only keep improving. Absent were Kara and Sarah and we hope to have a full strength team for Rocks this Saturday.

Scorers for Kats were:
Lauren 14, Rose and Tracey on 12 and Hannah and Kirsten with 8.

Kings Senior Men v Glasgow Storm

The fourth game of the season saw the fourth different starting unit. Some excellent team defence in the 1st quarter was countered by some poor finishing and resulted in a tie at the end of the quarter 12:12.

The 2nd quarter was much the same but with all players getting in, some nice ball movement and shooting saw us lead 28-20.

The 3rd quarter could best be described as interesting, as we moved out to a 12 pt lead after a few minutes, before Storm fought back cutting this to 1pt before we went on a run, based on another great team defensive effort, which saw us finish the quarter leading by 16 pts (52 – 36).

The fourth quarter saw the teams trade baskets with Findlay Wood scoring our last 5 points (3 + 2FT) on his debut for the Seniors. Difficult to pick out any individuals as all 10 players contributed something different at different stages of the game. Final score 67-50 to the Kings.

Scorers:

• Audrius - 15pts
• Simon - 12pts
• Craig - 12pts

Kings Cadet Men v Glasgow City

The Kings Cadet Men travelled to Eastbank Academy to play a Glasgow City side brimming with confidence after beating Boroughmuir Blaze in their last game. The Kings went out with a game plan to stifle guard Alex Geddes and be more direct than in previous games. This plan worked effectively right from the start with the Kings defence working perfectly and Kings taking a 24-12 lead at the end of the first.

Glasgow got themselves back into the game early in the 2nd quarter thanks to Glasgow guard J. Benny, hitting 2 of his eventual 5 ‘shot clock beating’ 3 pointers, to pull the score back to within 7 before Kings went back on the pressure led by captain Kyle Jimenez to lead by 12 at the half.

A change of tactics from Glasgow allowed guard Geddes back into the game as Glasgow won their only quarter of the game 25-22 and leaving the Kings up by 9. However, a Kings near on perfect press at the start of the 4th Quarter put the game to bed taking the Kings lead back into double figures and allowed the King’s two youngest squad members, Rory Milne and Stuart Greathead, into the game where they did not disappoint. A very strong team defensive display was capped off by guard Milne, who after successfully boxing out a player over a foot taller for a defensive rebound, broke with the ball to the half way line before sending a hair raising assist to captain Jiminez for his staggering 56th points of the game.

The only real low point of the game, a bounce out final 3 pt attempt from Jamie Campbell to miss out on the 100pt barrier for the day, quickly forgotten about after a very mature and impressive display from the Kings.

Final Score: Glasgow City 81-98 City of Edinburgh Kings

Kings Senior Men Lothian League v Central Jaguars

The Lothian League Senior Men started the season with a win 54 - 43 in Livingston against the Central Jaguars.

Graeme Cameron started the scoring for the Kings, this was 2 of only 9 points in the first quarter where everyone was looking a little rusty in the opening game.

The 2nd quarter was a different story the defensive play was very strong with a massive amount a rebounds for Steven Turnbull which in turn helped the offence convert some better opportunities.

After the half was slightly a different story and the Jaguars started to come in to the game getting the ball down the floor fast for a couple of easy scores. The Kings had a 15 point lead at the end of the half this was cut to just 2 points in the 4th quarter.

This changed dramatically when Anthony Hogg came back onto the floor after getting in foul trouble early. Within those last 5 minutes Anthony scored 8 unanswered points to close out the game to give the team its first of what should be many wins this season.

With a team that has so many new faces this was always going to be a tough game but a lot of solid performances both from starters and off the bench I am sure that this team can push on and have a great season.

Kats U18 Women v Polonia

Kats Topple Phoenix at Crags

The second outing of the season for Kats juniors was a weekend league game against Polonia Phoenix at the Crags. This was a physical and competitive encounter from the outset with both teams trading baskets throughout the first two periods. Kats created multiple fast break opportunities in the first half which refused to drop in the basket, but despite this Kats found other ways to score. By half time Kats had a 2 to 3 basket lead.

In the third period, a change in Kats defence proved fruitful and brought about Phoenix errors and turnovers. Kats pounced on this and, unlike the earlier phases of the game, were able to capitalise and convert these chances into points A 9-point lead forced a Phoenix timeout but this was not enough to interrupt Kats’ momentum and they continued to build on their lead.

By the end of the game Kats had a comfortable margin of victory, 57 – 46, which was hard fought and well deserved and hopefully will be a performance they can build on and carry forward. Next up Rocks on Saturday (26th October Tip Off 11AM) which will signal the juniors’ first home game of the season.

Top scorers in the game; Ciara 11pts, Eilidh 8pts, Rowan 13pts, Elspeth 9pts, Shannon 10pts

Match reports - Friday 4th & Sunday 6th October

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Senior Women v St Mirren

Kats Super 6 Find Victory Over St Mirren in the First Round of the Cup.

With illness, injury, holidays and work commitments hitting the senior women’s team, six players headed off on Friday night for their first cup game against St Mirren at the Lagoon.

The first half of the game was fairly evenly matched with both teams trading baskets throughout. St Mirren had a height advantage over Kats which allowed them to gain more rebounds than we would have liked. However, our centres were not going down without a fight with Kara and Trace picking up vital boards at both ends of the floor. Lauren and Kirsten played hard defence on St Mirren’s fast forwards to ensure no easy baskets. Kats were down by one at the half, 26-27.

In the second half Kats continued to play smart at the defensive end and kept fouling to a minimum. Kats called on all their experience in the last quarter to keep St Mirren scoring to only 10 points while hitting back themselves with 22.

Free throws from Lauren and Kirsten, along with two secured baskets from Nicole sealed the deal in the last few minutes of the game. Time was on our hands and the team did a great job of playing safe until the final whistle.

Scorers included Emma with 19, Trace 13 and Lauren and Kara both adding 10.

Absolutely fantastic performance from all! Everyone dug deep, played smart and came together when we needed to. Excellent bench support from Sarah. Game plan was very well coached. Overall a great team effort to produce a 62 – 53 victory and progress to the Cup quarter finals.

Cadette Women v Gracemount Panthers

Kats tame Panthers in new National League Division 2

This was the first game for the Cadettes in the newly created National League Division 2, taking on a new team from Gracemount who were coming off the back of a very close game only minutes earlier.

We started poorly with our defence loosing sight of their players and looking nervous at the other end. However after an early time out we settled into the game and eventually finished the quarter 12-5 up.

Good offensive rebounding was key in the second quarter as the smaller Panthers team struggled to box us out and we led at half time 26-11.

At the offensive end we lost our patience in the third quarter. With little ball movement the Gracemount defence found it easier to cope and they won the quarter going into the 4th trailing by just 10 points.

We upped our defensive intensity in the last quarter as fatigue started to show on the small Panthers squad. Our shooting also improved and we ran out winners with the final score 46-24.

All players contributed well at both ends with 10 different scorers but will need to improve our overall play before we meet some bigger teams in December.

Top scorers - Casey, Tia and Celina with 8 each.

Kings v Boroughmuir Blaze

Kings cruise to victory over Boroughmuir Blaze

Coming off their first loss in nineteen games, there were many questions if the U18 D2 Kings side could bounce back to their former glory, especially when matched up against the much taller Blaze squad. With their starting five back in action and new plays in hand we were set for a good Sunday match up.

From the opening tip the Kings side looked on point and rushed out to an early lead. Point Guard, Konrad Kantorski, took control of the side making excellent decisions and using the new offensive system to get the ball early to captain, Craig Greathead, for a number of 3 pointers. As always, rising star, Kyle Jimenez, had a huge impact creating scoring opportunities for himself and other team mates. Defensively the Kings boys had a large task on their hands, stopping the Blaze 6'7 forward; however thanks to huge efforts from Ali Reid and Matt Wingate, Blaze were limited to only 5 points for the first quarter and only 19 for the half.

The second half presented a common foe for the U18 D2 side in the form of the third quarter. From past experience this is where the side usually leaks points and worries were creeping into the team that this may happen again. However the extra preparation paid off and Kings continued their domination of the game thanks to a collective team effort having their best scoring quarter of the game with 27 points. Kings cruised through the last quarter, allowing role players more court time to develop.

Points scored were, Craig Greathead with 26 (including 6 three pointers), Kyle Jimenez with 17, Ali Reid with 10, Konrad Kantorski with 8, Matt Wingate with 8, Calum Hislop with 4.

Sunday showed an excellent performance from the Kings side, proving last weeks loss a merely a fluke. The U18 D2 boys showed a high level of composure and controlled the game till the end, battling against a much larger side. Each member of the team provided a different aspect which resulted in a good team victory against a strong side and showed a promising future for this season.

Final Score: 73 - 57

Kats Sweep Fury in season openers.

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All 3 women's teams had good victories against Falkirk Fury at the Mariner centre on Saturday.

A somewhat depleted Senior Women's team augmented by 4 talented Juniors began the day with a 64 - 51 victory over their Fury counterparts. It was a good all round team performance, with great support in defence.

Tracy was immense at both ends of the floor getting 25 points and loads of rebounds and Louise (18) and Kara (12) put in some useful points. Emma controlled things as always with Kirsten and Nicole taking good boards against taller opponents. The 4 juniors gave good service in spelling the Seniors throughout the game.

The Cadette Women were up next and had a solid victory 49 - 37 at the end of a see-saw game which saw Fury close the gap to a handful of points early in the last quarter.

All the girls got good court time from coach Kara Gillies, with Niamh Walker leading all scorers with 20 points. Good support too from the rest of the squad with points also coming from Roseanna, Casey, Emma and others.

It was a competitive game, but Kats had the edge all through and stretched away to a good win.

The Junior Women's squad had the easiest victory of the day with a 71 - 43 win to round things off.

The girls were too fast, direct and determined for the Fury girls, with Shannon (21 pts) having a field day near the basket. Rowan (20 pts) was very difficult to stop and with Elspeth and Cara getting the ball up the court quickly, fast breaks were common. Eilidh (6) and Ciara shot well and Kathleen threw in some baskets too.

In fact 11 out of 12 players scored points, reflecting how good a team performance this was. There will be tougher games ahead, but this was a good start to the season for the Juniors, and coaches Emma Findlay and Tracy Phillips.

Match reports - Saturday 21st & Sunday 22nd September

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Check out the match reports below for last weekend.

U12s

Both Kings and Kats U12 teams played in the RDL games today with experienced players turning out for the first games and then moving up to U14. This gave some of our newer and less experienced players an opportunity to showcase their skills, and they did not disappoint.

It was really pleasing to see players passing, defending, communicating and scoring using all of the skills they had learnt in training and largely without any prompting from the coaches.

The boys won three out of four games showing some real pace and skill from both experienced and less experienced players whilst the girls played themselves to a standstill, running, hustling and defending to the very last, most of the time against much bigger and older opposition. The girls won one, lost two (one of these a narrow defeat to East Lothian which could have gone either way).

Huge thanks to Paul for coaching the girls in their first game and to Matt and Alexander for coaching the boys during a really positive afternoon for the U12s and to all the parents for getting the players there on time and providing much appreciated support during and in between games.

U14s Boys

The start of the RDL league saw the Kings U/14 boys have 3 out of 4 wins today, the B team losing to Blaze A in the last game of the day.

All the players gave it their all and it was great to see 24 players having game time. The new U/12 players were superb and the experience of the older players certainly rubbed off on them.

Well done all players and also the players and coaches from Blaze and Peregrines, who won and lost in great sportsmanship which is a credit to them and their clubs, lets look now to the next rounds to be as good.

U14 Girls

After many months of training the U14 girls finally managed to put some of that into practice. The girls played extremely hard and gave it their all in both games but it seemed that it was not to be, as sadly we walked away with two losses.

It was lovely watching the girls enjoying themselves and being able to gain game experience which they can call upon at our next RDL fixtures.

Our new U12 players all stepped up to the mark and played superbly with our older players leading the way. We still have a lot to work on in training, in preparation to try and take home a win at our next games.

Although we missed out on a win at the weekend the girls came away from the day with their heads held high and I could not be more proud.

Cadette Women National League

Kats v SWL

This was the first outing for this year's Cadettes in a friendly against the new team in the league from West Lothian. Despite this they actually fielded 2 of last year's Scotland u16 squad who were backed up by a group of hardworking and aggressive players determined to make their mark on the league.

The first quarter was fairly evenly matched with both sets of starters creating good openings. However rebounding let us down with the bigger SWL players able to get far too many put backs under the basket and they led 12-22 going into the second period.

All 16 Kats players hit the floor before half time. The constant subbing seemed to disrupt the visitors offence as we went in at half time down by a single point : 27-28.

The third quarter was more of a struggle as we tried out different combinations on the floor. Their defence slowed down our breaks and made life in the key difficult for a number of our post players. End of 3rd 33-47.

We changed up our defence in the last quarter to get more practice and forced a few turnovers however in the end our offence became too static which gave them some easy steals for break away layups and finished the game 40-53 to SWL.

This was a good experience for all of the girls to see the pace of the Cadette game for those who have just moved up from u14 and hopefully they have all learned more about working together as we head into our first National League game this weekend.

Cadet Men National League

Kings v Boroughmuir Blaze

The Kings Cadets just came up short in a fixture with local rivals Boroughmuir Blaze. Unfortunately Kings were missing influential guard Kyle Jiminez who suffered an injury in in the week previous.

After a very close start to the game with both teams trading baskets Blaze managed to edge out into a lead in the 2nd quarter. Blaze further extended this lead after half time to put them in front by 20 points.

Kings however did well to fight back and managed to get the score back to 8 but in the end Blaze ran out 12 point victors - final score 64-52 to Blaze.

Kings played well for long spells although a slight lapse in concentration to start the 3rd quarter cost them dearly. Plenty of positives though to take away from the game and the return fixture at Portobello will be an exciting contest.

Main Scorers: K Kantorski 24, D Haquin 12, J Campbell 10

Senior Men National League

Kings v Boroughmuir Blaze

A once in a life time (hopefully) shooting game for John Browne of Boroughmuir (29 points) and a poor 2nd quarter provided Kings SM with theit first and hopefully only loss of the season.

In the 1st quarter both teams played a high tempo game that did not make for great spectacle with Kings edging ahead 17–14.

Unfortunately for Kings the 2nd quarter brough a lack of offensive rhythm, poor shooting and turn overs that saw Boroughmuir take a 7pt half time lead 33–26.

In the 3rd quarter we fought back to bring the game back to 1pt (39–40) early in the quarter, and even though Audrius hit 9 of his 16 points, a late flurry from Boroughmuir saw them pull away to a 10pt lead 55-45.

Tha final quarter was much the same as the third with Kings unable to pull the game back. Final score 77-63 to Blaze.

Main Scorers: Matt Kruczynski 20, Craig Reilly 17, Audrius Ciapas 16

Girls win 2 out of 3 in Arbroath

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The girls teams travelled to Arbroath on Sunday for games against Tayside.

After a slightly depleted Cadette Women side lost their game to Musketeers, the Junior Women team warmed up the crowd again with a a very close game which went to the last basket.

The lead went back and forth throughout the game, but the girls found themselves 6 points down with 2 mins to go. A huge effort in defence and some good finishing saw them score the last 8 points of the game to win 58 - 60. Great team effort with 5 different players scoring the last 5 baskets.

The Senior Women had a good win against their Tayside counterparts, and were never really troubled. It was a game when the whole bench contributed. The girls are coming into good form in time for consecutive games against St Mirren, the second one in the Cup semi-final on 15th Dec.

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Meanwhile on Saturday, it was a 100% success rate for the male teams at Dunfermline.

Both the Senior and Junior Men posted high scores over Dunfermline Reign to convincingly win 101-56 and 101-61 respectively. The Cadet game was closer but the boys still came through 73-69.

Further details can be found on scotsman.com or by visting our Facebook page.

KOOL KATS women sweep Polonia, for 3 wins out of 3

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All 3 women's teams recorded wins against Polonia on Saturday 10th November.

The Junior Women started it off with a 66 - 47 win to take them top of the league at present. Some big points from Kirsten, Hannah and Kirsty led the way, but they were well supported by Nicole, who had her best game so far, Rowan and Elspeth. Whilst giving bench players some more court time allowed Polonia to creep closer in the 2nd and 3rd quarters the girls stretched away in the final quarter to register a good win.

The Cadette Women, encouraged by their victory last week against Highland, turned over a strong Polonia squad by 39 - 37 to reverse the result from the Crags a week or two ago. The Cadette Women team continue to improve each week, with Amy, Niamh, Kara, Eilidh, Murran and Sarah all making telling contributions. Roseanna got the biggest cheer when she hit the winning basket in the game. Well done girls, and a great job in keeping Polonia down to under 40 points.

The Senior Women team rounded things off with another close match against Polonia. After losing by 1 point last time the girls won by 2 points on Saturday, 54 - 52. Some big 3-pointers from Sarah and Shauna boosted the total with Leanne chipping in some valuable points too. Polonia's big inside players make it difficult for the girls but Trace, Hannah, Kara and Biz (good luck in Dubai) all worked hard on them. Emma kept good control as always and Louise, Lauren and Rach worked hard in defence. Inflicting Polonia's first defeat, opens up the league again and a good win against Rocks on Friday will put the girls in the driving seat.

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Meanwhile it was two out of three for the men's teams, with the Senior Men enjoying an emphatic 101 - 57 victory over Stirling Knights on Friday night. This sets things up nicely for next weekend's crunch game against Falkirk Fury who are also unbeaten in the league this season.

The improving Cadet Men also recorded a 63 - 53 win over Tayside, but it was disappointment for the Junior Men who lost by a single point 52 - 53 to Tayside after taking a 15 point lead into the final quarter.

Further details can be found on scotsman.com or by visting our Facebook page.