Ok so the best solution I came up with so far is to edit mappress_poi.php on line 325:
from
return "<a href='#' onclick='{$map->name}.getPoi($i).open($zoom); return false;' >$title</a>";
to
return "<a href='#' onclick='{$map->name}.getPoi($i).open($zoom); return false;' ><div class='map-block'>$title</div></a>";
What this would do is simply add my your div class map-block wrapped by the <a> link. Which you can then style this block to change background on hover or stretch to entire width.
However, this would be a bit messy if you want the icons or the POI links (such as zoom or directions) in the same div.
I am also not sure if any updates would overwrite this file too, so just be careful. Would rather hear from the developer and see what he recommend.