BUPA Luxol 78

Depiro Kyocera 58

(22-13) (17-11) (12-17) (27-17)

Both sides were coming from a defeat and Luxol had Edgar Caruana Montaldo missing, whilst Joe Vassallo left Depiro for Loyola, in a lower division.

It was a balanced match at the start, but Luxol forged ahead, only for Depiro to tie at 7-7, through a David Agius trey. Depiro managed another J.P. Azzopardi trey but Luxol had better fire-power, and a session-ending 9-1 run enabled the Violets to lead by 22-13 after the first period.

Luxol opened on a good note in the second session, with an 8-0 run. Depiro settled down but Luxol still kept the upper hand. A Robert Azzopardi trey helped them to increase their lead but Depiro finished the session on a bright note, with a Roderick Vella trey and a Joe Vella hoop, seconds from the interval, for a 39-24 Luxol lead.

After the break Luxol were caught hopping by a strong Depiro start. A 13-2 run brought them back in contention, but Luxol managed to snap the bright patch and a Steve Schembri trey and a couple of Marco Mercieca hoops gave Luxol the breathing space to end the third session on a 51-41 advantage.

In the final quarter Luxol relied on their treys to hold back Depiro's efforts to get near enough. Chris Sammut's brace and Steve Schembri gave the Violets a commanding 69-50 lead which they could administer till the end, to finish the first round in third place, and leave Depiro at the bottom.

Luxol: C. Sammut 22 M.Mercieca 6 R. Azzopardi 5 M. Micallef M. Portera C. Pulis R. Dalli 1 D. Schembri 15 S. Cassar 11 S. Schembri 17

Depiro: R. Vella 9 D. Bugeja J. Rodriguez C. Bugeja C. Agius J. Vella 2 M. Ciantar 4 J.P. Azzopardi 9 E. Lupo 20 D. Ross 3 M. Mallia D. Agius 11

Referees: Carlo Farrugia, Emanuel Mangani

Pembroke 59

Hamrun L. Go Mobile 68

(15-14) (16-9) (13-18) (15-27)

For this last game of the first round Pembroke had Jeffrey Gatt just a spectator, being injured. Hamrun recovered David Camilleri from their last match, but Steve Pace was still missing. Both sides were cautious at the start, as Hamrun's first lead was annulled by Pembroke. Liberty then embarked on a 9-2 run, including an Abraham Portelli trey. Pembroke didn't take long to forge in front, and they were just ahead after the first session..

In the second quarter it was Pembroke who dictated play, starting with a Duncan Cuschieri trey, and going to a 10-1 run. Hamrun managed to react and a David Camilleri trey helped them to get within range again. Pembroke stopped Liberty's surge and added on points till the end of the session. At half-time it was a 31-23 game.

After the break Hamrun started to creep up slowly on Pembroke, going to within just a point, but Tino Riolo's hoops opened up the lead once more. Then came the treys from both sides as Pembroke held on to their lead. Till the end of the session Hamrun lost Alan Borg on two unsportsmanlike fouls, but went near on a 41-44 adverse score.

The last quarter started on a top note. Etienne Bezzina produced the treys for Pembroke but Liberty also had theirs from David Camilleri. A 9-2 run for Hamrun gave them the lead, and they regained it after Duncan Cuschieri's trey had tied at 55-55. Omar Said extended Liberty's advantage but Michael Naudi's trey kept the game open. Free shots enhanced Hamrun's lead, and they ended the first round on an unbeaten run.

Pembroke: M. Naudi 13 J. Zammit N. Lubrano E. Bezzina 6 J. Galea T. Riolo 11 A. MIcallef 8 D. Cuschieri 6 K. Baldacchino 15

Hamrun: K. Borg D. Camilleri 15 A. Spiteri 8 A. Borg 2 A. Portelli 9 O. Said 16 J. Jetson 12 A. Bonnici 6 I. Terribile N. Falzon

Referees: Bernard Vassallo, Gordon Barbara

Standings: 8 Hamrun L. Go Mobile (4-0) 6 Pembroke (2-2) 6 Luxol Bupa (2-2) 5 Siggiewi Smina (1-3) 5 Depiro Kyocera 91-3)