Ireland, Malta launch title bids with opening victories on Day 1

DUBLIN (Ireland) - Ireland and Malta started their campaigns at the FIBA European Championship for Small Countries with convincing victories on the opening day.

The hosts never trailed as they pulled clear to beat Andorra for a 96-81 victory, while Malta enjoyed a 96-65 rout over San Marino in the first game of the tournament.

Ireland had three starters combine for 65 points as John Carroll had 24 points and 10 rebounds, Lorcan Murphy added 21 points and Jordan Blount finished with 20 points, 13 rebounds and 5 assists in the win.

For Andorra, Guillem Colon had a team-high of 25 points along with 8 rebounds and 6 assists. There was little between the teams in the first half, but Ireland refused to relinquish their lead as they moved into a double-digit lead and never looked back.

It was a family affair in the earlier game as Aaron Falzon poured in a game-high of 32 points to lead Malta with older brother, Tevin Falzon adding 20 points and 10 rebounds for a double-double.

Malta came out firing with 31 points in the first quarter, but San Marino responded with 28 of their own in the second as they cut what was a 20-point deficit in half to trail by 10 at the half.

Another scoring blitz followed when play resumed as Malta took the third period 33-16 to put the game beyond doubt and they edged a low-scoring final quarter to just miss out on hitting the century mark.

They return to action on Wednesday to face Gibraltar, while San Marino aim to bounce back when they face Andorra.

FIBA