3x3 World Tour 2018 - Sydney Challenger Full Review
Image: FIBA.com
Sydney harbour, along Port Jackson Bay, played host to the very first FIBA 3x3 World Tour tournament held in Australia - the Sydney Challenger. With two spots in the main tour on offer here, a lot of talent from all over the world took to the court and produced two days of non-stop exciting basketball.
Home team Sydney looked to bounce back after a close defeat to Marienbad in the qualifying draw, but after a second loss 21-15 to Taoyuan, that would be it for Sydney. In the remaining fixture, seven points in a row from Marienbad left no time for Taoyuan to come back, and they booked their place in the competition's Pool C.
In the all-Australian second qualifying pool, Canberra won over Docklands by ten points, then faced off in a close game against Sydney Norths. For much of the proceedings only two points separated the teams. Good hustle and play in the paint from Sydney Norths had them in the lead, and eleven points in the last three minutes of the game saw them victorious. A final win over Docklands, 19 to 9, confirmed their play in the main tournament.
Piran found local team Sutherland hard to break away from, but as the game went on gaps started to emerge in the Australians’ defence and brought the game to an early conclusion. Sutherland looked to be faring better against Adjuntas, but stringing together enough scoring runs saw the Puerto Rican side steal the win at the end. Piran won the final battle for first place in Pool A, breezing past Adjuntas 22-9.
A shock result in Pool B saw Melborune defeating Kranj by two points , and they would later top the group after a second win, 21-14, over Auckland. The New Zealanders looked to take advantage of the shell-shocked Slovenian side, but the strength, skill and outside shooting of Kranj ensured they would be playing the next day.
Marienbad put pressure on Belgrade in the first game of Pool C, but as the game went on the Serbians’ experience paid off as they took the win by six points. Marienbad tried to do the same to Tokyo, but again their opponents handled the pressure better down the stretch. Tokyo eliminated Marienbad after beating them 21-17, but couldn’t carry on that winning momentum, losing the final pool game to Belgrade by seven points.
Sydney Norths’ time in the competition was cut short after they suffered heavy losses, first to Amsterdam, then to Lausanne. When the two victors met up in the Pool D decider, it was a one-sided show from Amsterdam, who blew out Lausanne by 21 points to 10.
Piran and Amsterdam both continued their dominance into day two, dispatching Tokyo and Kranj respectively in the quarter finals, both by six points. Adjuntas then produced a big upset, as they dominated Belgrade with their on-target shooting and cool use of possession. The most exciting quarter-final matchup was a back and forth game between Melbourne and Lausanne, which saw the lead change hands many times. The teams were separated by one point down the stretch, but a fadeaway jumper from Thomas Garlepp with seconds left helped seal the win for Melbourne. Three big-hitters in the 3x3 World were now lying by the wayside.
What followed were two hotly contested and tense semi finals where neither team gave an inch - Piran and Amsterdam went the full distance, and though Amsterdam led by one for much of the way, shots from Simon Finzgar proved to be decisive plays in this game as Piran emerged victorious, 18-16 Meanwhile, a similarly close encounter between Melbourne and Adjuntas saw them tied at 20 points with seconds left in the game. A foul on Garlepp sent him to the free-throw line, and from there he put the game to bed, sending Melborune to the final.
Melbourne got the first points on the board in the final, and after taking time to find their rhythm, Piran went three in front midway through the game. A drought followed as both teams worked hard to protect the basket. After which, in the last three minutes of the game, Piran ran rampant: they had seven unanswered points and led by ten going into the final minute. A two-pointer from Anze Srebvot made it official: Piran were the champions of the 2018 Sydney Challenger.
Melbourne can take consolation that a brilliant performance here has earned them a place in the Utsunomiya Masters in July, while Piran celebrated their second victory in the challengers, and are looking to be big contenders when the World Tour gets underway later this year.
Check out the official 3x3 World Tour website for more information on the Challengers and regular news and updates.
