XIONG’AN (China) - Argentina (men) and France (women) earned statement wins on Day 3 of the FIBA 3x3 U23 World Cup on September 19.
TEAMS
ARGENTINA (men)
It wasn’t easy, but Argentina came through to book their place in the knockout rounds.
They battled down to the wire against Italy, coming away with a narrow loss. The pressure was now on them to deliver in the final pool game of the day against a gritty Venezuela side.
Venezuela brought the physicality and took the fight to their opposition, but Argentina were game for it all. Santino Mazzucchelli, who had been stellar all tournament, delivered a clutch performance as his 9 points proved to be key to them earning a much-needed victory to seal their place in the Quarter-final.
While they didn’t go perfect on the day, their tenacity and spirit shone through as they now aim to carry over their recent win all the way to a deep run in the knockout stages.
FRANCE (women)
Les Bleus were sitting at the top heading into the deciding pool games today, but things were far from settled.
They were pitted against Poland in their opening game, another side in the pool that stood unbeaten. In what was essentially a battle for the top spot, France dominated. They came away with a 21 - 11 victory thanks to a tandem scoring effort while holding down their opposition from catching fire.
They made easy work of Algeria with a 22 - 8 win, closing out pool play in blistering fashion, just how they started. They now head into the Quarter-final with momentum firmly on their side and a clear message to the rest of the competition that they’re coming for Gold.
PLAYERS
LORENZO PICCIN (Italy)
Piccin was undoubtedly Italy's hero today. Finding themselves in a tough spot after splitting results in their initial pool games, Italy needed to sweep the day for a comfortable place in the knockout rounds.
They handled business against Algeria where Piccin put up a team-high 7 points, scoring from all levels to lead his side to the win. However, it was the battle against Argentina where he would truly shine. In a back-and-forth frenzy, Piccin answered every single time. With time winding down and scores level at 19 apiece, Piccin drilled an ice-cold dagger.
He finished the game with 11 points as Italy earned a Quarter-final berth thanks to the sharpshooter’s efforts.
MOMOKA HANASHIMA (Japan)
When needed most, she came in clutch.
After a rough game for the star from Japan to start off Day 3 action against China, she turned it around with a heroic performance in their game against Italy
Finding themselves down 18 - 13 with less than a minute to go, Hanashima went lights out. She drilled back-to-back twos before drawing the foul that took her to the line where she put the game to bed. A flurry of 6 points turned the tides in favor of Japan. She finished with 10 points and all the plaudits as they finished pool play unbeaten.
QUARTER-FINAL MATCHUPS SO FAR
MEN
CROATIA v ITALY
ARGENTINA v LITHUANIA
WOMEN
JAPAN v POLAND
FRANCE v CHINA
DAY 3
It’s time to close out pool play with the final pool games going down tomorrow. You don’t wanna miss this. Catch it all LIVE on the FIBA 3x3 YouTube channel.