2018 3x3 World Tour: Edmonton Challenger Review
The largest city in Alberta played home to the last Challenger tournament of the 2018 3x3 World Tour and, more crucially, was the last chance for teams to earn a spot on the main tour, as two spots in the upcoming Penang Masters were on offer here.
Home team Edmonton lost out in the Qualifying Draw, first losing to Old Montreal by five and then Olympia by six. In the final game of Draw A, Olympia broke local hearts, beating Old Montreal 21-17 and advancing to the main competition.
In the other qualifying pool, Calgary won 16-9 over Viking in the opening all-Canadian clash. Chicago, meanwhile, proved the tougher opposition, first downing Viking by five, then Calgary by six and advancing to Pool C in the main tournament.
As the entered the main draw, Chicago first suffered a narrow loss to Saskatoon, 22-19, then another to NY Harlem by three later in the day. Saskatoon spent the whole of the last Pool C game trying to catch up to NY Harlem, but despite tying the scores ahead of the final minute, a nice team move from NY Harlem won them the game 21-20, and the top spot in Pool C. Saskatoon's earlier victory also saw them advance as group runners-up.
Image: FIBA.com
Olympia began the main tournament with a five-point loss to Ralja, and were then eliminated after a 19-16 defeat by Tokyo. In the battle for Pool D supremacy, Ralja's strength won over Tokyo's tactical game and finished on top of the team from Japan in both the game and the group after a four-point win.
Amsterdam opened Pool A with a 21-9 win over Minnesota, who went on to win over Puerto Rican side Adjuntas by ten points. Amsterdam ended the pool with a 21-12 win over Adjuntas, and it being their second win of the day, they finish on top of Pool A, with second-place Minnesota joining them in the knockout phase.
Quebradillas pulled off a shock result in the first game of Pool B, beating Ljubljana by one point. They then secured their place in the knockout round with a 17-13 win over Winnipeg. The remaining teams were staring elimination in the face, but rampant Winnipeg fought off an off-form Ljubljana, and lived to fight another day in Edmonton, securing the runners-up spot with a final 21-14 win.
The remaining home teams were eliminated right off the bat on day two: in the first game, Saskatoon were eliminated 19-15 by Amsterdam, then Winnipeg fell to Ralja by two points. Quebradillas continued their impressive form of the day before, advancing to the semi-finals after a 21-15 defeat of Tokyo. In the last of the quarter-finals, it was sudden death between NY Harlem and Minnesota in the final minute, with both teams on 20 points. Antoine Morgano drew a foul and made the subsequent free-throw
Amsterdam lost their early semi-final lead to Ralja, who advanced to the final after beating the Dutch team by two, while NY Harlem brought Quebradillas’s run in Edmonton to an end, booking their final spot with a seven-point semi-final victory.
Both Ralja and NY Harlem came firing out of the blocks in the final, with Ralja leading by four with just under five minutes played, after which NY Harlem came back quickly with a six-point unbeaten run. A two then took them to within one of victory, and Dominique Jones put the Edmonton Challenger to bed with a long-range two - with the gold medal being NY Harlem’s.
Both NY Harlem and Ralja advance to the Penang Masters in October, though NY Harlem will be going on a wave of pride with the inaugural Edmonton Challenger title under their belts.
For more on the Edmonton tournament and all the 3x3 Challengers, click here to visit the official website.
