Hamrun are still missing Omar Said and had Steve Pace on an exam assignment at the time of the match.
Their methodical play at first was thwarted by Roderick Vella’s trey, but Liberty had the measure of their opponents, and a 9-0 run, coupled with treys by Karl Borg and David Camilleri, gave them a good enough lead, although a useless foul at the end of the session presented Roderick Vella with three points, 21-14.
In the second session, David Camilleri sank another couple of treys as Liberty emphasised their control on the game. The treys kept coming in and a 10-0 run made it a 39-16 game. At the end of the second session, Hamrun enjoyed a 41-20 lead.
After the break, Depiro still could not stop Liberty’s treys as they fell further behind. Depiro managed a 12-0 run later as Liberty stuttered till the end of the session. With the score on 48-37, Depiro were back in the game.
In the last quarter, Hamrun opened up with their treys again, particularly by David Camilleri, although Depiro also had a couple of their own. It was an incredible occasion as the treys kept pouring in from both sides.
Depiro managed to somewhat close the gap, but Hamrun always managed to net their hoops and steer clear again and David Camilleri’s feat, that of 11 treys in a single game, deserves special mention.
Hamrun: K. Borg 7, D. Camilleri 34, A. Spiteri 10, A. Borg 8, A. Portelli 10, J. Jetson 4, A. Bonnici 2, I. Terribile, N. Falzon.
Depiro: R. Vella 15, J. Vassallo, J. Rodriguez, C. Bugeja, C. Agius 4, J. Vella 2, M. Ciantar, JP Azzopardi 18, E. Lupo 2, D. Ross 15, M. Mallia 2, D. Agius 5.
Refs: S. Micallef, C. Farrugia.
Siggiewi once again were without Louis Camilleri and Pembroke started the game without Michael Naudi, left on the bench.
Pembroke, still smarting from their defeat by Depiro, had a good start and led 12-5, but the two sides were soon back on level terms – 14-14 – after JP Bonnici’s personal points.
Pembroke recovered to take the lead again by the end of the session.
In the second quarter, Siggiewi kept apace with their opponents for some time, with the score going up to 25-21. Pembroke then extended their lead but Siggiewi recovered briefly only for Pembroke to move ahead again to finish the session 42-29 ahead.
After the interval, Siggiewi put in two quick hoops but their efforts were stopped and Pembroke netted three times in succession. Siggiewi hit back for a 44-50 score, but Etienne Bezzina restored Pembroke’s lead. By the end of the third session, it was a 57-48 game.
In the final session, both sides committed mistakes and Steve Sammut’s trey had a reply from Duncan Cuschieri. Points became scarce for some time but Bezzina’s trey for Pembroke, late in the game, seemed to settle it but Siggiewi sank in two of their own to come perilously close again in the last minute.
However, Pembroke held possession to kill off Siggiewi’s hopes and atone for their mishap against Depiro.
Pembroke: M. Naudi, J. Zammit, N. Lubrano, E. Bezzina 19, J. Galea 5, T. Riolo 13, C. Calleja, A. Micallef 10, D. Cuschieri 9, K. Baldacchino 10, J. Gatt 6.
Siggiewi: R. Mifsud 2, S. Sammut 21, J. Doughty 1, H. Agius, M. Barberi 2, P. Shoults 10, JP Bonnici 9, P. Ferrante, S. Saakian 13, A. Huizer 7, E. Xuereb.
Refs: Emm. Mangani, JP Sammut