Basketball: Stunning six-minute spell sees Falkirk Fury secure win over St Mirren in league clash

An exciting, hard-fought contest at Grangemouth Sports Complex saw the Sony Centre sponsored side claim a 92-79 win – with that result seeing the club move onto an impressive 12-2 record for the season.

Boroughmuir Blaze continue to lead the table with a 15-1 record, with Fury just in behind in second spot, and both sides meet for a blockbuster double header home and away to round off the campaign.

On Friday, both sides started slowly with the scoring tied at 7 -7 halfway through the opening quarter. A 16-5 Fury run forced Saints into a timeout as the scoreline moved to 23-12 for the Falkirk team. Eddie Leginas was on top form from behind the arc during that spell with three triples.

That period ended with Fury harbouring an eight point lead at 26-18. The second stanza saw the game remain close with Fury taking the half time lead at 48-41. The game remained around the seven point mark in Fury's favour as the teams traded baskets, but it was Saints who closed the gap to make it a three game at 67-64 as the teams entered the final quarter.

The Paisley side then took the lead three minutes into the final period with a 72-68 scoreline on an 8-1 run. Fury's Jonny Bunyan then closed the gap almost immediately with a long range three but Saints pushed their lead out to 79-73 with six minutes of the game remaining.

It was at that point that veteran captain and three-point legend Keith Bunyan entered the game as Fury sought to spread the floor on the offence. While Keith did not connect from behind the arc, his side then went on an incredible 19-0 run, with Saints failing to score in that final six minutes, giving Fury a crucial victory.

For Fury, former BBL professional Ali Fraser top scored on 28 points with his ex-BBL team-mates Murray Hendry on 26 points and Jonny Bunyan on 13 points.

Eddie Leginas finished on 15 points with four threes while Adnan Jalil scored 10 points. Finlay Hendry completed Fury's scoring with two big threes.

Speaking after the win, Fury’s head coach John Bunyan hailed his team’s defensive nous late on after holding out a talented Saints side when it mattered most.

He said: “Holding three of their starter players to single figures was key for us and in particular Chris Cleary to five points - this is a player who has 40 points games recently, so a big shout out has to go to Ali Fraser and the team for their defence on Chris.

"To hold a team like St Mirren scoreless in the last six minutes of a game is practically unheard off and speaks volume to the effort we put in on the defensive end, while also still putting significant points on the board.

"We must also thank as usual our fans who second to none and helped make the result possible as we chase league glory.”

Falkirk Fury now face Dunfermline Reign on the road this Saturday at St Columba's High with a 4pm tip off.

While Fury have beaten Reign twice in the league this season and in the Scottish Cup Final, the Fife side always prove a challenging team on their own court.