Basketball: High hopes for Capital sides at Pleasance extravaganza

The Scottish Basketball Cup Finals at Edinburgh University's Pleasance Sports Centre this weekend promise to be a real Capital show with no fewer than eleven teams from the city - six from the City of Edinburgh club, three from Polonia Phoenix and two from Edinburgh University - contesting the various pieces of silverware on offer over the next three days.

Top of the bill tonight (7.30pm) is the Scottish Chairman's Cup in which first-time finalists City of Edinburgh face an Aberdeen University team fresh from a mini triumph in Sheffield, where they won the British Universities Trophy.

First there are the two Scottish Universities Challenge Cups, Edinburgh v Strathclyde (women) (3.30pm) and Edinburgh v Glasgow (men) (5.30pm). The big question of the weekend, however, will be whether City of Edinburgh men and women can complete first-ever trebles, having both been victorious in last weekend's new National Play-Offs. Edinburgh Kool Kats appear to have the tougher task in the women's final at 4.45pm as they face the holders Glasgow Rocks, who will be smarting after relinquishing the Scottish League title to the Kats.

Underdogs last year, Kats nearly beat the Cumbernauld outfit, but this year's Kats team, with Charlotte King and Rowan Bell back and guards Emma Findlay and Sarah O'Brien in great form, have matured into a much more formidable unit who have beaten Rocks in two of their three league clashes.

Edinburgh Kings follow against St Mirren in the men's final (7pm) and have beaten their opponents three times already this season, most recently last Sunday in the National Play-Offs final. However St Mirren coach Stuart Glass said: "It suits us to be underdogs. We had a big result last Saturday when we beat a full-strength Falkirk Fury team in the semi and that took it out of us as we were carrying some injuries.

"We'll be better prepared for the final and we've a habit of beating Edinburgh once a season - hopefully that will come tomorrow."

Glass believes that producing an upset will be down to how they handle Michael Kirkpatrick, who scored 28 points against them last Sunday. "If we can stop him then we're in with a good chance," he said.

Kings' coach Danny Costello's main concern is complacency: "We just cannot afford to allow them to settle into a rhythm."

Kings also appear in the cadet men's final against Troon Tornadoes tomorrow (12.15pm) and the junior men's final against the same club on Sunday (3.30pm). Polonia face St Mirren in the cadette women's final tomorrow (2.30pm) and Falkirk Fury in the junior women's final on Sunday (11am), while their Lothian League side play City of Edinburgh in the Chairman's Women's Cup tomorrow (10am).