Howard powers Luxol past Valletta
Hibernians kept up the fight for top spot with a close victory of The Plaza Depiro as Luxol Sherries Estates held firm to beat Valletta Dream even after 14 triples. Starlites Revive stay top of the league after yet another blowout victory against Athleta AtoZ.
HIBERNIANS 77
THE PLAZA DEPIRO 73
(19-10, 19-23, 19-17, 20-23)
Hibernians pulled away with a composed display to secure a close victory over Depiro in Sunday’s opening fixture.
The Paolites’ success was built on consistent pressure and strong showings from Deonte Jackson, who led the team’s scoring with 22 points, and Ivan Demcesen, who followed with 18 points.
Felix Uadiale showed his strength at both ends of the court for Depiro as he finished with a 24-point, 10-rebound double-double.
Trevon Reddish-Rhone also bagged a double-double for the Mtarfa side with 18 points and 15 rebounds, while Nikola Bozovic added 14 points.
However, these were not enough to overcome title holders Hibs on the day.
Christian Narciso’s Hibs set the early tone through athletic finishes from Ayomide Ajiboye and Piotr Stelmach, while Matthew Gouder capitalised on second chances.
Depiro answered through free throws and a Reddish three-pointer, but turnovers began to hurt them. Eventually, Hibs led by nine after a surge in the final three minutes.
The second rubber saw Depiro attempt to level proceedings. However, despite Uadiale’s six-point run, Stelmach and Gouder hit back.
The margin floated around the eight-point mark for most of the quarter as Jackson and Demcesen responded to Reddhish and Uadiale’s attacks, with five points separating the two sides at the halftime break as Hibs led 38-33.
Hibernians seized control again quickly after the restart. Demcesen reopened the scoring with a hook shot before Jackson struck from beyond the arc on the break and added points at the line. Demcesen continued to dominate with Stefan Simic and Neil Cassar contributing further to the cause.
In the final quarter, Hibs’ target looked to be closing out the contest. However, Depiro were not to be broken just yet and despite 5-0 run in the beginning of the rubber, Luca Stefanovic hit back with a triple.
It was tit-for-tat in the last 10 minutes but there was nothing a Sean Galea triple could do after Ajiboye’s layup gave Hibs a two-possession lead in the final 30 seconds of the game.
HIBERNIANS N. Cassar 3, E. Simmons 11, A. Ajiboye 4, L. Farrugia, P. Stelmach 6, M. Gouder 12, D. Jackson 22, M. Attard, I. Demcesen 18, S. Simic 1.
THE PLAZA DEPIRO S. Galea 6, T. Reddish 18, L. Stefanovic 6, JP Schembri 3, S. Kenely, C. Cornelius 2, F. Uadiale 24, N. Bozovic 14.
Referees N. Rincon, F. Ciurariu, A. Attard.
VALLETTA DREAM 78
LUXOL SHERRIES ESTATES 96
(15-26, 24-25, 22-25, 17-20)
Luxol produced a clinical display to defeat Valletta, asserting control early and never allowing their opponents to settle.
Darron Howard led the game’s scoring with 40 points, combining offence and defence with 13 rebounds for a double-double.
Xavier Brewer followed his American compatriot with 25 points as captain Stefan Cappello stuck to defence to finish with 14 rebounds.
At the other end of court, Myles Roper was again in great offensive form to put up 30 points while Albert Varcallo finished with a 17-point, 14-rebound double-double.
The Violets opened the scoring through Xavier Brewer and Isaac Azzopardi, and they quickly imposed themselves by forcing turnovers and attacking before the defence could recover.
Howard sparked an early run with consecutive three-point makes and drives, yet Lisondra and Roper steadied Valletta with trips to the line before hitting from deep.
Jayden Johnson ballooned Luxol’s lead into double digits, hitting his side’s last eight points to give Luxol an 11-point lead at the end of the first quarter.
The pattern continued in the second period.
Brewer remained effective around the rim, but Roper began to control the tempo, mixing fadeaways with strong finishes on the break. Varacallo added pace and scoring from the wing, while Stefan Vincic’s shooting stretched Luxol’s defence. However, Brewer and Howard repeatedly punished turnovers at the other end to ensure a 51–39 lead at the halftime interval.
Luxol kept up their intention to lift the tempo after the restart, with Brewer and Howard taking over the Violet’s scoring. Valletta responded mostly through Roper, with Lisondra, Vincic and Varcallo contributing triples. However, Luxol looked consistent, and this helped them remain in control.
The Citizens had to put up a strong fight if they were to come back from such a deficit. However, that was never in Luxol’s plan as they built a 20-point advantage midway through the rubber.
The Capital club did, however, begin to fire at will from beyond the three-point line, with the Lisondra, Varcallo, Roper trio hitting no less than five three-balls, but Howard’s constant bombardment closed out a comprehensive victory for Luxol.
VALLETTA DREAM F. Mifsud Bonnici 3, L. Vella 6, S. Vincic 8, M. Roper 30, J. Lisondra 14, A. Varacallo 17.
LUXOL SHERRIES ESTATES D. Howard 40, A. Azzopardi 4, I. Azzopardi 4, N. Vasovic 2, J. Johnson 16, M. Brincat 3, M. Iloube 2, X. Brewer 25, S. Cappello.
Referees Z. Dobrosaviljevic, F. Ciurariu, W. Lim.
ATHLETA ATOZ 77
STARLITES REVIVE 122
(18-22, 11-31, 28-34, 20-35)
Starlites delivered a dominant and high-tempo performance to overpower Athleta, using a no-contest second quarter as their fuel for second-half composure.
Jackson Threadgill and Travis Fee led the Starlites offence with 24 points and 22 respectively. Matthew Scerri was again in form to put up 17 points and Jayden Iturmendi followed with a 14-point, 10-rebound double-double.
Athleta debutant Orlando Little Jr. had a good start to life at Athleta as he led his side with 23 points.
Athleta got things going with layups from Vitale and Little, before Scerri hit a jumpshot to halt an early run.
Little kept things in Athleta’s favour but Scerri’s triples and Alec Felice Pace layups gave Starlites a six-point lead, with Little bringing it down to four before the first buzzer.
The second period proved decisive. Threadgill and Musa Jallow opened the floodgates for Starlites, with Threadgill and Miguel Fabri hitting three-balls to shoot up the Naxxar side’s lead as they led 53-29 at half-time.
After the restart, Athleta fought back, but Starlites showed no signs of stopping.
It was a balanced affair with Vitale, Little, and Isaac Bonett firing for the Gżira side, while Fee spearheading the Naxxar side as they led by 27 ahead of the final quarter.
The final rubber was all about game management. Starlites maintained their intensity, sharing the scoring load as the margin grew steadily for a 45-point win.
ATHLETA ATOZ K. Fabri 2, M. Duffy 5, S. Ebelashvili 14, R. Vitale 18, I. Bonett 7, M. Spiteri, L. Borg 2, O. Little 23, J. Cefai 6.
STARLITES REVIVE A. Felice Pace 13, T. Fee 22, I. Felice Pace 13, M. Fabri 8, Z. Said Hollier, M. Scerri 17, J. Iturmendi 14, J. Threadgill 24, M. Jallow 11.
Referees N. Rincon, M. De Flavia, J. Siefert.
STANDINGS
Starlites Revive 18; Hibernians 17; The Plaza Depiro 13; Athleta AtoZ, Luxol Sherries Estates 11; Valletta Dream 10.
