Hibs unbeaten after phase one

Hibs Medsea maintained their unbeaten record with another victory over Depiro last weekend.

The two rivals of women's basketball are in the Championship Pool along with Loyola Xuereb Installations who were surprised by Luxol in their last match from the opening phase of the women's league.

In the top game, despite playing without captain Lucienne Bezzina, Hibs were still strong enough for Depiro who also had to do without key players Joselle Cardona and Rachel Camenzuli.

With playmaker Beverly Zammit and Doreen Parnis in fine form, Hibs opened a 12-4 lead. Depiro narrowed the gap to 18-15 by the end of the quarter but the start of the second 10-minute session was a bad one for Depiro.

They suffered an 11-2 break and changed ends 37-23 behind.

Hibs were easily the better team on court. They administered their advantage expertly in the next two quarters to finish 76-53 winners.

Luxol took advantage of Sandra Schembri Wismayer's absence for Loyola to chalke up a surprise win. After a balanced start, Luxol got the upperhand a few minutes before half-time to open a 32-21 lead.

Loyola lacked composure and never looked capable of upsetting Luxol who held on for a deserved 54-42 victory.

Sliema Wanderers continued with their progress of late. Against Kerygma, they led 13-7 at the end of the first quarter. Sliema opened strongly in the second quarter and with Kerygma unable to lift their game, they led 27-19 at half-time.

Sliema continued to show the best ideas and it was only in the last minutes that Kerygma tried to stage a reaction.

But, at that stage it was too late as Sliema held on for a 54-49 win.

Standings: Hibs (12-0) 24; Depiro (9-3) 21; Loyola (7-5) 19; Luxol (6-6) 18; Kerygma (5-7) 17; Sliema Wanderers (3-9) 15; SN Suns (0-12) 12.

Top scorers: B. Zammit (Hibs) 216; J. Calleja (Kerygma) 176; M. Desira (Hibs) 158; L. Scicluna (Sliema) 146; S. Schembri Wismayer (Loyola) 141.

Louis Borg Cup final: Friday (first leg) 7.45 p.m. Hibs vs Depiro. Sunday (second leg) 2.30 p.m. Depiro vs Hibs.