Carrick on Saturday night. Eagles 81, Carrick Cruisers 50, and a place in the National Cup semi-finals to bring back down the motorway. There's a different feel to cup basketball, and the Eagles clearly fancy it.
The travelling support made the trek to the Phoenix Centre for the 8pm tip, and they didn't have long to wait before the night went the way they'd hoped. Limerick pressed up early, hurried the Cruisers into bad decisions, and the lead grew through the first half. After that it was about keeping the foot down. The bench got minutes, the ball kept moving, and nobody coasted.
Round one was Portlaoise back in November, won away from home. Carrick makes it two cup nights, two wins, and now one game from a final. The draw will tell us where the semi takes us.
That'll do for a long Saturday on the road. The Eagles are in the last four, and this is the time of year the club enjoys most.