BASKETBALL – CHONGMING of China were last night crowned champions of the Manama Masters, part of the 2024 FIBA 3x3 World Tour.
The quartet of ZhiChao Xiang, Karlis Lasmanis, Zhenhuan Liu, and Cameron Forte claimed the coveted crown after defeating Paris of France 22-20 in a thrilling tournament final, played at a specially built venue at Bahrain Financial Harbour in the kingdom’s capital.
Xiang fired in the game-winning two-pointer off the glass to seal both the game and the championship for the Chinese outfit.
Following the contest, Bahrain Olympic Committee (BOC) vice-president Shaikh Isa bin Ali bin Khalifa Al Khalifa presented the winners their awards alongside Tourism Minister Fatima Al Sairafi and Bahrain Basketball Association president Alaa Mudara.
Meanwhile, Bahrain’s representatives Riffa had a disappointing ending to their home event – bowing out in the quarter-final stage yesterday after winning their first two games in their preliminary round pool.
Riffa lost 14-17 to Hangzhou of China and had to settle for a fifth-place classification on the final 12-team rankings. Riffa competed with a team of Dennis Donkoar, Jonas Foerts, Caspar Augustijnen and Thibaut Vervoort.
In the title-decider, Chongming and Paris matched each other point for point and the game was tied at 11-all with five minutes remaining. Later, after Paris went ahead 20-18, Lasmanis fired in from beyond the arc to tie the proceedings with just over a minute to play.
But a Paris turnover on the ensuing possession gave the ball back to Chongming, and following a timeout and a Lasmanis attempt that was blocked by opposing player Paul Djoko, the ball went straight to Xiang and he put up a rushed effort to beat the shot clock. To Xiang’s surprise, the ball banked in, surpassing the 21-point target for the win and securing the championship for his team.
Fore was the victors’ leading scorer in the final with eight points, while Xiang added six, Lasmanis five, and Liu three. Hugo Suhard paced all players with 10 markers in the loss, while Jules Rambaut chipped in with six.
Earlier, in the semi-finals, Chongming edged past Ulaanbaatar MMC Energy of Mongolia 21-18 while Paris were 15-13 winners in overtime against Hangzhou.
The FIBA 3x3 World Tour is the leading international street basketball series under FIBA, basketball’s international governing body.
This year’s Manama Masters marked its second edition, and it was held under the patronage of Supreme Council for Youth and Sport first deputy chairman, General Sports Authority chairman, and BOC president Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa.
Fourteen men’s teams from around the world took part, with 12 making it into the group stage.
Chongming joined Partizan of Serbia as the two winners of the Manama Masters. In last year’s inaugural edition of the kingdom’s event, Partizan clinched the title after defeating Antwerp TOPdesk from Belgium, who are now Riffa.
patrick@gdnmedia.bh
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