KOROR (Palau) - With the semi-finals of the FIBA 3x3 Youth Nations League – Oceania just around the corner, every team came out with a point to prove at Stop 6. Teams were particularly hungry in the men’s competition, with the first-place spot hotly contested between Palau and Fiji.
Women’s Conference 1: Familiar Faces Return to the Finals
FIJ v MHL – Continuing their winning form, Fiji took care of business against the Marshall Islands who were gallant in defeat, 21-6. Jennifer Wase from Marshall Islands was a standout for her team, scoring over half of the teams’ points (4), while Fiji’s Moana Liebregts continued her dominance at the rim totalling eleven points.
PNG v PLW – Papua New Guinea’s women’s powerhouse team showed no mercy against the host nation. Athena Sungino from Palau did her best, putting up three points, but Papua New Guinea’s dynamic duo of Alice Kaiawa and Jackie Asiba was too strong for the host nation, dismantling their opponents for a 21-4 victory.
VAN v MHL – These two teams put on a show in their final day of the event, with Vanuatu taking the early lead to set the tone. Anne Sau led her team from the front, inspiring both offence and defense, with deep one-pointers and a gnarly two-pointer at the mid-way point to keep them ahead 12-4. The Marshall’s Hiroko Obeketang didn’t give up, finishing with six points, but it wasn’t enough, Vanuatu running out winners 19-10.
FIJ v VAN – Asserting their dominance on the competition, Fiji once again made light work of Vanuatu to book another spot in the finals stop. Moana Liebregts topped the scoring again with eight points, leading her team to a blowout 21-2 victory, with over two minutes on the clock to spare. Julia Kasten from Vanuatu scored the only two points for Vanuatu in the loss.
PLW v VAN – In their final game for the event the host nation had a point to prove and were eager for their second win of the competition. Vanuatu was equally up to the challenge, having improved significantly as the event has progressed. Vanuatu’s Julia Kasten was fast and tough, inspiring her nation to an 18-10 win, cementing the Vanuatu women’s spot at third in the final conference standings.
Women’s Final – Papua New Guinea v. Fiji
Meeting in a stop final for the sixth time, these two teams were well acquainted. Papua New Guinea had won just one of the previous final encounters. Jackie Asiba and Alice Kaiawa again led the way for Papua New Guinea, staying in touch with the dominant Fijians for the first half. Some sharp passing from Moana Liebregts exploited Papua New Guinea’s defensive gaps to create a 7-3 lead for Fiji, before she nailed a long-range two of her own, signalling another strong finish was on the cards for Fiji.
Asiba sunk two free-throws before putting up a shot from the arc to come within three of Fiji, with the scoreboard sitting a 10-13 with 90 seconds to go. A Papua New Guinea comeback was not to be though, as Fiji closed out another stop win, 14-12 the final score.
Men’s Conference 1: First Place on the Line
FIJ v MHL – It was a frantic opening minute with neither team able to hit the scoreboard, but both remained clean on the foul front. Ratu Tuivanuavou from Fiji broke the deadlock hitting a sweet two-pointer. His team was tight defensively, and the Marshall Islanders’ pace and agility was put to the test, Rusin Abraham rising to the challenge. Heading into the final half, the Marshall Islands held a small lead, but fouls were beginning to add up, and Fiji’s Tevita Vocea capitalised on the compromised defense with impressive drives and two-point conversions. In the end it was Fiji who stole the win, 16-13.
PNG v VAN – Three minutes in, and it was Vanuatu leading 7-3 with Papua New Guinea struggling to contain the much-improved Vanuatuan unit. Papua New Guinea fought back though, and the scores mostly remained within one-point until the last 60 seconds. Vanuatu stepped up to extend their lead, and a two-pointer from Ashley Vora sealed the deal 21-17.
GUM v MHL – The men from Guam struggled to hit their straps this event but were determined to show what they were capable of on the final day. Coming off a tough first game against Fiji, the Marshall Islands were on the back foot, but Rusin Abraham once again shot well to keep his team on the board. David-Jay Osborn and Raven Pascual from Guam shot better though, guiding their team to a powerful 21-11 win.
PLW v VAN – The home team came into Stop 6 off the high off an overtime finals win at Stop 5, but Vanuatu came in with just as much momentum from their earlier win against Papua New Guinea. The game started out tight, but it was Vanuatu who took a slight advantage.
Palau’s Kaekoa Mamis hit a few from deep, but sharp assists from Ashley Vora kept Vanuatu ahead, as the host nation then struggled from outside the arc. But, once again, it was Jerry Ngiraremiang who showed more heart in the clutch than anyone else on the court, pulling Palau back to even with a timely inside score. Mamis closed out his scoring with one final two-pointer, and Ngiraremiang followed with one of his own. Palau had pulled away to a 17-14 lead. Vanuatu tried to rally a late comeback, but with the crowd behind them, the host nation were barely able to hold on, overcoming Vanuatu 17-16.
GUM v FIJ – Fiji had nothing to prove coming into their final pool game against Guam sitting comfortably on top of their conference standings. Guam on the other hand had their sights set on reaching their first Stop Finals after a win earlier in the day. Guam gave Fiji a run for their money, never letting the favourites get more than three points ahead of them. Fiji took a 15-14 lead with only seven seconds remaining, but a clutch bucket from Guam’s David-Jay Osborn sent the game into overtime. It was Isaac Sewabu who broke the hearts of the Guam fans, scoring two unanswered buckets to give Fiji a 17-15 win, and sending them through to the Stop 6 final.
PLW v PNG – Top of the conference Palau needed this win to head into the Stop 6 final and secure a semifinals birth on the pendulum day of competition. Westin Andrews was impressive as always, but the tall timber of Papua New Guinea would not go away, led by some crafty work from Rodrick Faustino. The final three minutes were fast paced with both teams heading to the free-throw line and staying accurate. Palau worked hard driving to the rim while Papua New Guinea opted to try their luck form the arc, to no avail. Papua New Guinea’s pressure produced a shot-clock violation from Palau with 20 seconds to go, giving them possession trailing 18-20. They managed a quick one-pointer, but it wasn’t enough, with the host nation holding on for another one-point pool game victory, 20-19.
Men’s Final – Palau v. Fiji
There was a lot on the line in the men’s Conference 1 final at Stop 6. In a one versus two match-up, the winner between Palau and Fiji would finish at the top of the conference standing heading into the semifinals. With the home crowd behind Palau, Jerry Ngiraremiang come out hot, but it didn’t phase Fiji, who put on the pressure and put together a masterful team performance. Ngiraremiangs nine points were not enough to top the Fijian giants, who cruised to a 20-15 victory. Fiji was simply relentless on the interior, scoring 18 of their 20 points from inside the arc.
SEMI FINALS PREVIEW
Fiji’s wins in both the men's and women's placed them top of the Conference 1 standings. This will see them play against the second-place teams from Conference 2 in their semifinal match ups tomorrow.
Women’s
Fiji will match up with the Northern Mariana Islands, the game kicking off the semi-finals action at 10:30am local time (UTC+9). Papua New Guinea will play in the following game as they find themselves second in the women’s Conference 1 standings after the final stop. They will face off against a powerhouse Tongan team in their semi-finals match up, which will take place at 10:55am local time (UTC+9). Papua New Guinea have a tough game ahead of them, as the Tongan team has been dominant all tournament, winning at five of the six Conference 2 finals.
Men’s
Fiji will face off against Tonga, who despite not being as dominant as their female counterparts, have proven themselves a formidable opponent to many Conference 2 teams. The Fiji men’s game commences at 11:20am local time (UTC+9). The last semi-final match will see the home nation of Palau take on the Solomon Islands, who barely edged out Tonga to sit top of the Conference 2 standings. The Solomon Islands team has lacked consistency in the tournament but has been unstoppable on their day. The home fans will be hoping the Solomon’s have an off day. Palau will play at 11:45am local time (UTC+9).
Where to Watch
All four semi-finals matchups will be streamed live on the FIBA 3x3 YouTube channel, as well as the grand finals games that follow.