Malta double win tally, Andorra off the mark on Day 2

DUBLIN (Ireland) - Malta eased to their second win at the FIBA European Championship for Small Countries with Andorra bouncing back from an opening day loss to get off the mark.

Aaron Falzon put up a 38-point performance to propel Malta past Gibraltar, 89-63, with six threes along with 8 rebounds and 4 steals. Kurt Cassar added a big double-double of 18 points and 20 rebounds, while Tevin Falzon pulled down 14 boards to go with his 9 points.

It was 10-10 inside the first three minutes before Malta made their move to add a further 19 points to establish a double-digit advantage by the end of the quarter. Malta then proceeded to stretch their lead in the second half as they completed a comfortable second victory.

Andorra improved to 1-1 as they claimed a 91-56 success against San Marino behind 20 points apiece from starting duo Alexis Bartolome and Guillem Colom.

They set the tone in the first quarter to race into a 31-12 advantage with the gap passing the 20-point mark in the second and it continued to grow. San Marino did edge the third period, but ran out of steam in the fourth as they were held to just eight points as they drop to 0-2.

On Thursday, Andorra face Gibraltar in search of their second win, while hosts Ireland return to action when they take on San Marino.

FIBA