Korolev win first pro title at 3x3 Ekaterinburg Challenger

EKATERINBURG (Russia) - Korolev (RUS) claimed victory in Russia winning the 3x3 Ekaterinburg Challenger on July 9-10, 2019.

Here's how it played out:

The Winners: Korolev (RUS)

The young Russian team, whose players represent Russia at the FIBA 3x3 U23 Nations League, took first place to the delight of the Russian fans in attendance at Ekaterinburg. The high-powered offense secured an average of 21.3 points per game heading into the final with the shifty Kirill Pisklov (39 points) topping the scoring charts on his home soil. Ilia Karpenkov dominated the glass to lead the Challenger in rebounds at 35 whilst adding 32 points to his production.

 

The Runners-Up: Nantes Aderim (FRA)

The French side were not able to overcome the physical play in the final after a strong tournament. Charly Pontens led the French team with 32 points in the tournament while Dominique 'Mr Nice' Gentil anchored the side in the paint securing 25 rebounds over the two days. The experienced team finished second in both points and rebounds in the tournament

 The Final: Korolev 18 - Nantes 14

Korolev began the game with a series of tough finishes to take an early 5-3 lead. Kevin Harley went to work on to help Nantes back to level before the Russian team extended the lead once more. Pisklov and Krivykh were able to lift Team Korolev to a 13-9 lead from which they didn’t look back, despite the efforts of Gentil and Pontens, to secure a 18-14 victory.

 

The Reward: 2 tickets to the Lausanne Masters

Korolev took home $15,000 USD and secured tickets for the Lausanne Masters alongside Nantes on August 23-24 in the sixth stop on this season’s FIBA 3x3 World Tour. They join Liman (SRB), Princeton (USA), Piran (SLO) and Lausanne (SUI).

Final Standings

1. Korolev (RUS)
2. Nantes Aderim (FRA)
3. Ralija Intergalactic (SRB)
4. Bejing (CHN)
5. Gagarin (RUS)

Top Scorers

1. Kirill Pisklov (Korolev) 39pts
2. Charly Pontens (Nantes) 32pts
2. Ilia Karpenkov (Korolev) 32 pts
4. Vuk Obradinovic (Ralja) 26pts
5. Nebojsa Kilijan (Ralja) 26pts

Key Stats

There were still more than 4 minutes left when Gagarin (RUS) beat Cairo (EGY) in the fastest game of the day.
Ilia Karpenkov (Korolev) finished 1st in rebounds and tied at 2nd in scoring.
Nantes star Charly Pontens had a huge triple-five in the quarter-finals against Humpolec (CZE). The 24-year-old had 12 points, 6 highlights and 5 rebounds.

FIBA