Toronto at the 3x3 Ulaanbaatar Challenger - Full Report
The most active Canadian team on this year's 3x3 World Tour, Toronto were back in action once again in the Mongolian capital Ulaanbaatar.
Regulars team members Bikramjit Gill, Alex Johnson and Dele Ogundokun were joined by NBL Canada star Tramar Sutherland as this Toronto unit travelled to face some of the top 3x3 teams around in one of the most heated tournaments yet this year, where places in August's Lausanne Masters were up for grabs.
It was going to be tough from the outset for Toronto; playing in Pool B they would be facing two experienced and hard-to-beat 3x3 teams, Antwerp, followed by NY Harlem.
Toronto began their campaign with a back-and-forth start before surging ahead with six points unanswered, to which Antwerp responding with a 5-0 run of their own. The Belgians then claimed the lead with five more points without reply, but Gill and Johnson were quick to hit back and tie the scores once again.
Toronto were held scoreless in the last two minutes, where Bryan De Valck and Caspar Augustijnen sealed the win for Antwerp and the Canadians were resigned to a losing start in Mongolia. Antwerp then went on to beat NY Harlem 21-17, securing their place in day two and leaving Toronto and NY Harlem to battle it out for the last spot from Pool B.
When the teams faced off, Gill gave Toronto an early lead and helped to maintain it until Kidani Brutus hit five in a row for NY Harlem, putting them in front and ballooning their lead to six soon after. Toronto responded with five points in a row to close the gap, then Sutherland edged them into a one-point lead.
NY Harlem's Dominique Jones had the last shot of regulation, tying the score at 20 and sending the game to overtime, where Alex Johnson hit from beyond the arc winning the game for Toronto and extending their stay in Ulaanbaatar.
The road continued to be rocky for Toronto as they advanced to face home team Ulaanbaatar in the quarter finals, which had former Canadian 3x3 star Steve Sir in their ranks. When the teams met Otgonjargal Tsogt gave the hosts the early lead from close range, with Sir contributing in and outside the arc which saw Toronto trail by seven.
All on the team found open looks in the paint to close the gap, but Toronto then gave away too many fouls and opened the door for the Mongolians to get to within one possession of victory. Gill and Johnson did everything they could in the dying seconds to keep Toronto's campaign alive, but Ulaanbaatar were not going to disappoint the home crowds at the expense of their Canadian opponents.
Despite the loss, Gill impressed as he finished among the top scorers in Ulaanbaatar with 8.3 points per game, while Ogundokun was one of the tournament's top rebounders, averaging 5.3 boards in Toronto's four games.
Both teams Toronto suffered a loss to, Ulaanbaatar and Antwerp, met in the final, where the Belgian team prevailed in a close game to capture their first tournament win in 2023.
Toronto will next be seen at the Poitiers Challenger at the end of June. Until then, find out more about the Ulaanbaatar challenger by following this link to the official FIBA 3x3 website.
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