Malta hold off Albania to win Division C title, Galea collects MVP honors

DURRES (Albania) - Malta were crowned champions at the FIBA U18 Women's European Championship 2023, Division C, after defeating Albania 56-47 in the Final, their first title since 2007.

Tournament MVP Danika Galea posted an 18-point, 10-rebound double-double for Malta and shot 8-of-11 from the field. Galea recorded double-doubles in every game of the tournament and finished with averages of 28.0 points and 19.0 rebounds per game.

Seda Gabrielyan, Brikena Mucenji, Danika Galea, Paula Collado, Anisa Bokrina 

Albania's All-Star Five duo of Anisa Bokrina and Brikena Mucenji combined for 28 points and 13 rebounds. Mucenji finished with a team-high 17 points in the Final with Bokrina the only other player in double figures with 11 points along with 7 rebounds.

Malta found themselves behind heading into the final quarter, but outscored their opponents 20-10 in the fourth to claim the title with a crucial putback from Galea in the closing stages.

In the Third Place Game, Armenia got past Andorra 81-66 behind Lia Krumian's game-high 26 points. Three other players recorded double-doubles for Armenia including Seda Gabrielyan - with 12 points and 10 rebounds - and was rewarded with a spot in the All-Star Five.

Andorra's Paula Collado also earned a place after a fine tournament that concluded with 21 points and 11 rebounds in defeat as her side missed out on a medal.

Meanwhile, in the Classification Group 5-7, Cyprus breezed past Kosovo 85-54 to secure a 5th place finish.

Final Standings

1. Malta
2. Albania
3. Armenia
4. Andorra
5. Cyprus
6. Kosovo
7. Moldova

FIBA