SBC GotW Report: Blaze 70-87 Fury

Sony Centre Fury ended the regular season on a high as they picked up a 70-87 victory over Boroughmuir Blaze at Crags.

Sam Scott, MVP in Blaze’s Scottish Cup win over St Mirren earlier this year, netted the first basket of the game for the home side on his way to a game-high 20 points. It didn’t take long for Bantu Burroughs to reply for Fury as both teams traded baskets in the early stages.

Back-to-back three-pointers from Eoghann Dover (19 points) edged Blaze ahead but Fury responded each time as six players all recorded their first points of the game in the opening minutes. The lead changed hands no fewer than seven times before a late flurry from Fury gave the visitors a five-point lead after the first. 15-20.

A 6-2 scoring run from Blaze – which began with Luke Howden scoring 2/2 from the free throw line – brought the hosts back to within a basket of the lead. The deficit wasn’t reduced for long however as five straight points from Edvinas Leginas restored Fury’s cushion.

The latter stages of the half were all about three-pointers as Dover added two for Blaze whilst Captain Keith Bunyan (15 points) added three in a row for Fury. With just three points separating the sides, two late free throws from Makaleb McInnis (13 points) saw the half end with five points still splitting the sides. 36-41.

Fury caught fire in the third, beginning with a 10-2 scoring run to build a double-digit lead. Blaze were left to rue their persistent fouling, with six of the ten points coming from the free throw line: four from Leginas and two from Evaldas Burksaitis.

Adam Howden ended Fury’s scoring run with a jump shot for Blaze, however the basket didn’t change the momentum as the visitors hit back with another 8-0 run; a three-pointer from Bunyan the highlight of the baskets as Fury opened up a big advantage. 45-64.

Despite holding a comfortable lead, Fury showed no signs of slowing as they netted 23 points in the opening five minutes of the fourth. McInnis added seven consecutive points for the visitors to start the run before Kieran Allan found the basket with three consecutive three-pointers to end Fury’s scoring, opening up a game-high 33-point lead.

Blaze kept battling throughout, with Scott adding five quick points in the early stages. Despite the comeback looking unlikely, Blaze ended the game strongly with a 16-0 run. Scott added seven more points, continuing his red-hot form as the teams all look towards the playoffs. Luke Howden rounded off the scoring with four late points but it was Fury who claimed the advantage heading into the March’s Soho Wealth SBC Playoff Finals. 70-87.