If this is a taste of the matches to come, then we are in for some nail-biting stuff. The two sides provided great entertainment, and it was a pity that one of them had to finish on the losing side. Both teams had their moments, and the final result hinged on who would make the least errors. Free shots were a determining factor, as Luxol lost too many of them at the end, and paid the price.

The two teams obtained their first points before Etienne Bezzina made the opening trey for Sliema, from a side shot. Luxol’s reply brought them to a point down, at 6-7, but Sliema put in three hoops in a row. Luxol’s reply came through a number of free throws, halted by an Adrian Micallef hoop. At the end of the session it was all-square, as Luxol tied with a late Chris Sammut basket.

In the second quarter Luxol’s strong play continued, as treys by Steve Schembri and Sammut compiled a 12-4 run, for a 27-19 lead. Sliema came back slowly, through free shots and a second Bezzina trey, to tie the score, late in the quarter. Dirk Schembri’s points put the Violets ahead again, and they kept their noses in front, till the half time buzzer, on a 31-27 score.

After the break Sliema recovered after a slow start. A 7-0 run gave them a lead, but Luxol made some good penetrations, for a 40-39 advantage. Sliema managed another lead, through Kristin Baldacchino hoops, but Luxol were always just behind them. In the session’s last moments Sliema held a 47-44 advantage, as Luxol failed their last attempts.

In the final quarter, Sliema fell behind again, to a Sammut trey, but replied quickly, and the lead changed hands once more, on a 52-49 score. Luxol clawed their way back, and a Steve Schembri trey put them ahead. It was a tie with less than two minutes to go, when Omar Said made an important steal, to put the Blues back in front. Sliema lost Michael Naudi and Silvio Cassar on fouls, but just held out as some free shots eluded Luxol, and the end of the match found them trailing to a single hoop.

The win gives Sliema some breathing space, in the path for a place in the final, but Luxol’s task is still difficult, as it was before this game.

LUXOL: 16 C. Sammut, 9 M. Mercieca, R. Azzopardi, M. Micallef, 2 A. Bianchi, R. Dalli, 10 D. Schembri, 2 E. Caruana Montaldo, 2 J. Jetson, 18 S. Schembri

SLIEMA: 13 M. Naudi, J. Zammit, C. Calleja, 10 E. Bezzina, J. Galea, A. Southward, 9 O. Said, 4 A. Micallef, 8 K. Baldacchino, 16 S. Cassar, 1 J. Gatt

REFEREES: Bernard Vassallo, Stephen Micallef, Alfred Carbonaro