Dutch team takes World Tour title; Manila puts up gallant stand in qualifiers
THE FIBA 3×3 World Tour Masters was successfully held at the weekend in Doha, Qatar, with the Netherland’s Amsterdam Talent&Pro winning the title.
Amsterdam Talent&Pro took its first-ever World Tour title over Serbia’s Novi Sad, 21-19, after new recruit Maksim Kovacevic drained a last-second shot from beyond the arc in the finals held at the Al Gharafa Sports Complex on Saturday.
The team from Manila, meanwhile, put up a gallant stand in the qualifiers the previous day.
With the game tied at 19 with a few seconds to go in the game, Mr. Kovacevic hit the game-winning two-pointer off a handoff to catapult Amsterdam Talent&Pro to the breakthrough title.
The two points were part of the 13 markers Mr. Kovacevic had in the championship game.
His teammate Arvin Slagter topped all scorers at the two-day event with 35 points and was named most valuable player.
The number one 3×3 player in the world, Dusan Bulut, led a new-look Novi Sad along with new addition Strahinja Milošević.
In the individual contests, Piotr Grabowski of Poland won the Elite Air Dunk Contest while Darius Tarvydas (Šakiai Gulbelė, Lithuania) dominated the McDonald’s Shoot-out Contest.
GALLANT MANILA STAND
Meanwhile, a revamped Manila Chooks TM team did not make it to the main draw of the level-11 (maximum level) FIBA tournament, but still fought hard in the qualifiers.
The team of veteran Chico Lanete, Mac Tallo, Zach Wong, and Dennis Santos finished with a 1-1 card in the qualifiers.
Manila’s victory came at the expense of home team Doha, 21-20, in overtime, thanks to a game-winning two-pointer from Mr. Lanete.
The former 5-on-5 campaigner’s initial attempt from downtown was blocked by 6-foot-3 Doha player Faisal Abuissa but Mr. Lanete, who was the oldest player in the 14-team meet at 41, was able to recover, faking out his defender before knocking down the deuce that towed them to the win.
Manila Chooks TM lost, 22-17, in the previous game to Austria’s Graz, which advanced to the main draw with a 2-0 record in the qualifiers. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo
