Team Malta won its first ever medal in basketball 3×3 as the women’s selection reached the tournament final before going down to Luxembourg.
The men’s team tried to emulate their male counterparts and reach the semis but were beaten by Andorra in a close match.
“We are very happy with the performances of both teams,” Paul Sultana, the Malta Basketball Association president, told the Times of Malta.
“The girls were superb throughout, and the men, despite the results, entertained us with their quality of
play against very strong opposition and were never outclassed.
“The silver of the women’s team was fully deserved. Against Luxembourg, we put a very strong challenge against a team that is more experienced than us.
“I can only say that I am very proud of both sets of players.”
On his part, Roderick Vella, coach of the women’s selections heaped praise on the women’s team.
“The girls did a great tournament, winning all games except against Luxembourg both in the group stage and the final,” he said.
“They played exceptionally well, showing great teamwork. The team showed grit and determination throughout the tournament, and in the final, they did an amazing job against a stronger team, staying close all the game, just falling short at the end.”
As regards the men’s team Vella feels Malta came up short from a physical aspect.
“The boys’ team had a decent tournament, losing close games throughout. 3×3 is very physical and we struggled a bit as other teams were stronger and bigger in size. Still we had a good shot at a medal,” he concluded.
The Luxembourg women’s team had already beaten Malta in the round robin stages, and confirmed their superiority in the final yesterday.
Luxembourg won the final contest 19-15, with the Maltese girls giving a spirited fight till the end of the game. Malta’s points in the final were obtained by Melgoza, who was the best scorer with seven points, followed by Stephanie De Martino with four, and with Kristy and Danika Galea making two points each.
The Malta squad was made up of Amber Melgoza, Kristy Galea, Stephanie De Martino, and Danika Galea.
In the morning the Malta girls managed to reach the final after beating Cyprus for the second time in this edition of the games. Yesterday Malta defeated Cyprus 21-12 to earn the right to face Luxembourg in the final.
Disappointing results for the men’s team who lost the semi final against Andorra 21-16, this being the third defeat against Andorra in these games. The men’s side thus lost all its matches in these games.
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