Champions Hibs Medsea won last weekend's top match against Luxol to open a one-point gap on their opponents at the top of the table.

Depiro McDonald's are two points behind the leaders after their victory over Loyola Allcare Insurance while Honey Athleta broke their duck at the expense of Starlites Sports Experience.

Hibs held off Luxol's frantic efforts to extend their winning run to six matches.

After Hibs had opened a slight lead, 16-11, Luxol hit a good patch between the end of the first quarter and the start of the second to forge 22-18 ahead. Hibs battled back to level the score at 24-24 going into the half-time break.

The match remained balanced with Hibs holding a two-point lead, 33-31, for the last 10 minutes.

Luxol chalked up five points at the start of the last quarter to move 38-35 ahead. Now it was Hibs' turn to show their mettle and they obliged. Their bold reaction put them back in front, 49-41, and Hibs withstood Luxol's pressure to win 51-44.

Depiro kept up the pressure at the top with a comfortable 97-57 victory over Loyola. Their win was never in doubt as Depiro led 46-17 at half-time. Although Loyola improved after the interval, they remained second best to Depiro.

Athleta left Starlites still looking for the first victory in a hard-fought match. Starlites led 23-20 at half-time but Athleta recovered to go 30-26 ahead.

Starlites tried to regain the initiative but their efforts were not enough to stop Athleta from obtaining their first victory, 55-49.

Standings: Hibs 12 (6-0); Luxol 11 (5-1); Depiro 10 (4-2); Loyola 8 (2-4); Athleta 7 (1-5); Starlites 6 (0-6).

Top scorers: S. Pace (Depiro) 126; K. Agius (Depiro) 112; L. Sciberras (Athleta) 108; S. Demartino (Luxol) 90; D. Micallef (Hibs) 86.

Next fixtures: Friday, Jan. 8, 16.15 Depiro vs Starlites, 19.45 Athleta vs Luxol. Sunday, Jan. 10, 14.30 Hibs vs St Andrews.

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