Edmonton at the 3x3 Lipik Challenger - Day 1 Review

Situated in northeastern Croatia, the town of Lipik played host to the first FIBA 3x3 tournament of 2021 to take place on European soil. A regular feature of the annual 3x3 World Tour, the qualifying tournament this time out saw a lot of top teams apply to take part - including the premier Canadian 3x3 side, Edmonton.

Captain Steve Sir and his team - Kyle Landry, Alex Johnson and Joradn Jensen-White - came to Lipik knowing they would be facing two very different teams in the pool stage. First would be up-and-comers Bielefeld from Germany and then a staple team of the 3x3 circuit, Ulaanbaatar. With their unpredictable opposition, it looked to be a wild start to their Croatian campaign.

Alex Johnson put the first points on the board in the Bielefeld game, he was followed by Jensen-White and Sir, putting Edmonton up 6-1 after 2:30 played. The German team picked up some points in the paint, but so were the Canadians. Edmonton went on to dominate from inside the arc while Bielefeld kept making up points from beyond the two-point line.

Bielefeld made a push to save themselves when Johnson got Edmonton to within a single possession of victory, only for Landry to hit two shots in a row to bring them to the winning score. In the end it was all too easy for Edmonton who open the tournament with victory over Bielefeld, 21-18.

In the last game of day one, Ulaanbaatar had to beat Edmonton after suffering a five-point loss to Bielefeld earlier in the day. They went in front within the first minute but the Canadian team were quick to catch up; Jensen-White got them to within a point, Johnson then tied the scores and finally Sir put them in front.

Ulaanbaatar twice found the points they needed to level the scores just as Edmonton were starting to break away, only for Sir's outside shooting to put the Canadian lead further out of reach. After a late four-point run Edmonton were within a point of victory, with not enough time for the Mongolians to stage a comeback.

A final shot from Kyle Landry sealed the win for Edmonton, they top Pool D undefeated after the 21-14 dispatch of Ulaanbaatar.

These results set up Edmonton with Antwerp in the quarter finals, the Belgian team's only loss so far coming from NY Harlem, who will play Bielefeld for a semi-final spot. No one was surprised when Liman and Novi Sad both finished their pools without a loss, they will respectively face the surprise package from Japan, Aomi, and San Juan - the Puerto Rican team who have come further than any other, having come through the qualifying draw to secure a place in the pool stage.

The events of day one have set up what looks to be an eventful and exciting second day of 3x3 basketball in Lipik, which will see the first European title of 2021 awarded. Come back here for a full report of who that will be, meanwhile more details on the Lipik Challenger can be found on the official FIBA 3x3 website.

Picture: FIBA3x3.com