It’s a Hibs-Depiro final

Hibs, the masters of the KO competition, surpassed a tricky hurdle with relative ease after eliminating Loyola Alyssa Ashley to book their place in the final against rivals Depiro McDonald’s who had the better of Luxol in the other semi-final

Hibernians 55
Loyola Alyssa Ashley 25
(10-12, 17-7, 19-0, 9-6)

Hibs gained revenge for their upset to Loyola in the MBA Shield final when they eased past their opponents in their KO semi-final.

Loyola started on a bright note but their resistance crumbled after the break.

Lena Gipson, the Hibs pivot from the US, showed improvement on her first outing to finish the match as top-scorer with 14 points.

Hibs coach Bruno DiPietrantonio changed tactics, surprising Loyola who had no effective answer, particularly in the third quarter when they didn’t manage a single point.

Loyola made the better start to take an 8-4 lead but they struggled to keep their momentum as top-scorer Christine Grima was kept under tight supervision by Hibs.

The Paolites settled down and took the upperhand as the second quarter got underway.

Loyola tried hard to regain the lead but their efforts were not enough to stop Hibs who changed ends 27-19 ahead.

The third quarter was disastrous for Loyola. Hibs were aggressive in defence and increased their pressure full-court… Loyola were nowhere to be seen.

The Paolites took full advantage and extended their lead to 46-19. They slowed their tempo in the last 10 minutes but a dejected Loyola were unable to react.

Luxol 55
Depiro McDonald’s 63
(11-15, 17-17, 14-15, 13-16)

In a highly entertaining cup semi-final, Adrian Mifsud’s Depiro toppled Luxol to set up a final against Hibs.

There was little difference between the two sides but Maltese-Australian Sam Brincat left her mark for Depiro as she potted nearly half her team’s points – 30.

It was Luxol who began strongly to move 7-4 ahead. Depiro’s reply saw them notch 11 consecutive points to lead 15-7.

Luxol recovered to close the gap till the end of the quarter 15-11.

In a balanced second session, Luxol fought back to narrow the gap to four points, 32-28.

Luxol were hit hard when playmaker Beverly Zammit was dismissed for arguing with the officials in the third minute.

At first, Depiro took advantage, surging ahead 43-34, but Luxol came back to start the last 10 minutes five points behind 47-42.

After Luxol managed to level at 47-all, seven consecutive points pushed Depiro clear. Luxol came within a basket but Depiro recovered well to nail the final six points.

Next fixtures
Saturday: Louis Borg Cup QFs, first legs – 13.45 Luxol vs Phoenix Qormi; 17.15 Depiro vs Loyola.
Sunday: Louis Borg Cup QFs, second legs – 13.00 Phoenix Qormi vs Luxol; 14.45 Loyola vs Depiro.