XIONG’AN (China) - Croatia (men) and Japan (women) make waves, going perfect in pool play on Day 1 of the FIBA 3x3 U23 World Cup on September 17.
TEAMS
CROATIA (men)
Croatia came into this tournament a bit under the radar, but took no time to make a loud statement on Day 1 of pool play.
They started off with a matchup against reigning champs Germany. What followed was a masterful defensive display from the Croatians, grinding the explosive Germans to a halt while finding buckets of their own. The game ended 15 - 13 in favor of Croatia, a marquee win for the side. Roko Baburek put up a team-high 6 points in the result.
They took on Poland next, another team that has earned the top spot in this competition in the past. It was once again the Baburek-led Croatians that dominated, holding Poland to just 10 points in a 13 - 10 victory.
All eyes will be on Croatia who have established a comfortable advantage in the initial portion of pool play.
JAPAN (women)
When Japan get rolling, good luck trying to stop them. The offensive juggernauts were on fire all day as they started off their U23 World Cup run on fire.
A team of stars, all capable of scoring from all levels, Japan made easy work of Egypt in their opener with a 22 - 11 victory. Momoka Hanashima scored a team-high 7 points with everyone finding their touch from deep.
It was a tougher matchup in their final game of the day against Chinese Taipei, a closely contested affair that went Japan’s way - 20 - 18. This time it was Tanaka Ufuoma who led in scoring with 8 points. The blistering side from Japan put themselves in a comfortable spot heading into the final pool games on Day 3.
PLAYERS
DULGUUN GANKHUYAG (Mongolia)
The Mongo-Lion was in go-mode tonight. Mongolia, though going 1-1 in their games today, looked dominant on offense and it was much thanks to Gankhuyag. He put up a team-high 9 points in their win against Italy, including a two to call game.
He followed it up with a massive 12-point outburst in a narrow loss to Argentina. If Mongolia hope to go far in the tournament, they’ll need the Mongo-Lion to keep roaring.
MAGDALENA SZYMKIEWICZ (Poland)
Poland were dominant as it gets to start pool play, steamrolling past opposition on their way to a perfect record, and Magdelena Szymkiewicz was at the forefront of it. She notched a whopping 11 points in a 21 - 4 result against Algeria, imposing herself and earning fouls to lead the way for her side.
She added 8 points to her tally, another team-high scoring display as they earned a 22 - 9 victory against Venezuela.
The Polish star was on an absolute tear as Poland showed out on Day one action.
DAY 2
We alternate to the other side of pool action as we will wrap up the first half of pool games tomorrow. Catch it all LIVE on the FIBA 3x3 YouTube channel.