Boroughmuir Blaze given Chris of life in thriller

Chris Arazim landed a dramatic winning shot as Boroughmuir Blaze stunned Falkirk Fury at The Crags after wiping out a ten-point half-time deficit.

Week two of the new Scottish basketball season also saw City of Edinburgh Kings beat local rivals Edinburgh Lions to make it two wins out of two, while their women’s team began their title defence with a thumping victory in Armadale.

Boroughmuir had suffered a surprise opening defeat in Dunfermline, and 2017 champions Falkirk looked set to inflict further misery when they raced to a handy half-time lead. Tighter defence got Blaze back in the game and, after levelling the scores, they patiently created room for Arazim to sink the decisive three-pointer as they scraped home 65-62. Mateusz Kruczynski was their top scorer with 14 points, while Jordan Green added another 12.

Kings followed their home win over Stirling with an 80-63 victory over Lions at Oriam. Ali MacKay’s 29 points enabled them to join Dunfermline at the top of the table, but they must now wait almost a fortnight before getting the chance to extend their 100 per cent record against Edinburgh University. Although beaten again, newly-promoted Lions should be encouraged after playing far better than they did when losing heavily to champions St Mirren in Paisley last week.

In the women’s league, holders City of Edinburgh Kool Kats planned to make a statement of intent when they visited West Lothian Wolves on Sunday, and coach Ben Gunn’s side did precisely that, winning 94-25. Emma Findlay and Leanne Page both scored 18 points with Alex Nelson, Tracey Phillips and Mhairi Bain also making it into double figures.

“It’s always good to get off to a good start to the new season,” said Gunn, whose team face an early test when they host last season’s runners-up Lady Rocks this Saturday.

Following a summer of departures, Scottish Cup winners Edinburgh University had their new head coach Donnie MacDonald on the bench and fielded a new-look line-up against St Mirren at The Pleasance. Saints had posted 94 points in their opening match and produced another free-scoring display in the Capital. The shell-shocked students trailed 28-3 after the first quarter and 43-9 at half-time before eventually losing 65-30. If you discount a forfeited match in February, it was their first defeat on the court since last October.

In Saturday’s other ladies fixture, Falkirk beat Polonia Phoenix 77-50 at Liberton High.