3x3 Women's Series in Montreal - Day One Report

The penultimate stop on the 2021 3x3 Women's Series saw Canada playing on home soil. The Montreal tournament would be the last chance for teams to guarantee them a place in the Bucharest final and the stacked field were all looking to do just that.

It was a different look Canadian side from prior ones for the home tournament. The only team member from their last Women's Series outing, Paige Crozon, was joined by fellow 3x3 international

Catherine Traer plus newcomers Christina Buttenham, McMaster Marauders alum, and Rashida Timbilla of Kouvoutaret in Finland. This somewhat untested team would be facing stiff competition from the outset in Mongolia, Spain and Poland in Pool B.

As with any 3x3 tournament, the Montreal stop began with the group stage, where the eight participating teams played in groups of four. The winners would get a bye to the semi finals in the knockout stage, while the second and third teams would enter an eliminator round to keep their chances alive - but from then on there would be no margin of error.

Opening against Mongolia, Canada put the first six points of the game on the board, half of them coming from Timbilla. Initially Mongolia responded by cutting their early deficit from beyond the arc and later their inside play turned a one-sided game into a single-possession one.

The Canadians kept up the pressure, picking up plenty of points in the paint while Crozon led the team's defence. She led her team with eight total rebounds while Timbilla was Canada's top scorer with nine points as they got their home tournament underway with a win, 16-12 over Mongolia.

Looking to continue this winning form against Spain, Canada had a pair of two-pointers to start the game and Crozon hit two from close range to put the team up 7-2 in the first few minutes. It did not take long for the Spanish to narrow the gap, they made it a one-possession game at the mid-point and a subsequent run of five unanswered points put them in the lead.

Timbilla and Traer tried to save the game for Canada as time wound down but the outside shooting of the Spanish kept them on track to victory. Despite Crozon leading her team in scoring and rebounding, Spain came away with the win 19 points to 14.

This results complicated Canada's tournament path and a win against Poland, who like them had won against Mongolia but lost to Spain, while not a guarantee could gift them the easiest route to the final on day two. They opened their third game in similar style to their last, making two shots from outside the arc, but the Polish response was quick: six points unanswered which put them into a lead which they kept growing while Canada kept falling short in possession.

Crozon and Timbilla kept trying to make up the difference but it would not be until the last three minutes when they got their next points on the board and by then it was too late. With a late 4-0 run from Poland, inside shots from Timbilla and Traer only brought Canada's final deficit down to 14-9.

Canada fought hard to please the home fans but in the face of stiff competition finished third in the group, made official after Spain won 21-17 over Mongolia in the last Pool B fixture. The winless Mongolians were out of the tournament and Canada had been handed a big lifeline.

Montreal also saw plenty more exciting results from the other competing teams. The opening game between Netherlands and Austria went to overtime, where a drive from Rebekka Kalaydjiev at the shot clock buzzer sealed the upset victory over the Dutch. Not long after Germany came back from six points down to take the USA to sudden death, but there would be no surprise ending here as Breanna Richardson made the two shots in OT to get the Americans off to a winning start north of the border.

Two more Pool A games ended as one-point victories and a late comeback by the USA against the Netherlands won them their group and a semi-final spot. Germany's sole victory over Austria won them second place, they will be Canada's quarter final opponents on day two. Meanwhile the earlier Austrian win saw them advance over the Ducth, they will face Poland in the quarter finals.

A win against Germany on day two could see Canada set up a rematch with the Spanish, while the red-hot USA team await the winner of the German-Austrian tie. Check back here for the final results from the Montreal women's tournament and find out more on the official FIBA 3x3 website.

Picture Credit: FIBA3x3.com