Depiro won the first group A game in the series. They were without Roseanne Falzon, but included Antoinette Borg, back from abroad. Luxol will miss Justine Mangion, for the rest of the season, also abroad.

Depiro had a strong start, after suffering the Violets’ first basket, but then dominated the rest of the session. In the second quarter there was Depiro in command once more, after Luxol had opened with a Mandy Sciortino trey. Depiro’s lead increased steadily, and it was left to Dawn Spiteri, to obtain the Luxol points. At the interval it was a 33-11 game.

After the break the scoring died down on Depiro’s part, while Luxol improved on theirs, although still trailing at a distance from their opponents. After three sessions Depiro held a good 40-20 advantage.

In the final quarter Luxol slumped again at first, allowing Depiro to forge further ahead, to a 50-22 score. The Violets then had a good patch at the end, as Depiro started to relax their hold on the match, but the winning margin was quite a comfortable one for the Mtarfa side.

Depiro: 19 Dorianne Galea, 15 Sarah Pace

Luxol: 9 Dawn Spiteri

Referees: Stephen Micallef, Jennifer Mangani