Gibraltar U16 boys faced defeat at hands of Monaco

Gibraltar U16 boys faced Monaco on Wednesday in the FIBA U16 EuroBasket Division C group matches.
It was a tight contest between two sides who have struggled against the top teams in the competition, with both looking to secure their first win of the tournament.
It was not to be for the Gibraltar U16 boys. A positive start to the match saw them go neck-and-neck with Monaco for much of the first quarter, although the gap had opened to six points by the end of the period.
Gibraltar then saw the deficit widen in the second quarter as they struggled to find points. Scoring just six points in the period, one of their lowest returns of the competition, Gibraltar watched Monaco stretch their advantage further after scoring 26 points of their own.
Gibraltar came out of the half-time break with greater purpose and won the third quarter 17-13. However, the deficit built up in the earlier quarters had become too large and the four-point gain made little impact on the overall scoreboard.
Trailing 61-39, the fourth quarter was always going to be an uphill struggle. Gibraltar produced an energetic response, but Monaco still managed to widen the gap by a further five points, eventually taking the match 82-55.
Gibraltar next face Andorra on Thursday evening in a tie in which they will be hoping to make better progress. Their opponents, who lost 98-62 to Armenia and 111-109 to Malta, did beat Monaco 66-56 on Monday.