Andorra make it back-to-back wins, while Ireland keep pace at the top

DUBLIN (Ireland) - Andorra made it two wins in as many days at the FIBA European Championship for Small Countries with hosts Ireland continuing their unbeaten start.

Guillem Colom led the way for Andorra with 27 points along with 8 rebounds and 4 assists in their 91-74 victory over Gibraltar to move to 2-1 and keep themselves in contention behind Ireland and Malta.

Andorra had made a strong start to lead by 10 after 10 minutes, but Gibraltar battled back to surge ahead as they took a slender 41-39 advantage into the break. The gap was cut in half heading into the final period, where Andorra powered their way to victory with a 33-point blitz.

Ireland returned to action as they enjoyed an emphatic 107-59 victory against San Marino to join Malta on an early 2-0 record with Will Hanley and Sean Flood both scoring 15 points in the win.

There were no signs of rust following their rest day as they came out firing to take control of the contest with an opening 27-2 run. Ireland continued to pull away as they had a commanding 59-22 advantage by half-time, though, while the damage had been done, San Marino were far more competitive after the break and edged the third quarter.

Ireland resumed their dominance in the fourth and brought up their century of points inside the final three minutes as they continue to march towards a Sunday showdown with Malta.

The tournament resumes on Saturday when Malta take on Andorra before Ireland face Gibraltar on the penultimate day.

FIBA