Three in a row for Mondelo and Moore

BEIJING (WCBA) - Spain national team play-caller Lucas Mondelo and USA star Maya Moore continue to be a dream ticket together after catapulting Shanxi Rui Flame to a stunning third consecutive WCBA title.

The duo were once again the headline figures as they both secured another Championship crown for the team who have dominated since they joined the WCBA three seasons ago.

To make this latest triumph even sweeter, Shanxi lifted their latest silverware on the home floor of arch rivals Beijing Great Wall after clinching a dramatic 72-70 victory to beat their opponents 3-1 in the Finals series.

As usual Moore was on fire and collected a brilliant 35 points and 16 rebounds to get one over on her USA colleague and fellow FIBA World Championship for Women winner Brittney Griner, who had 26 points for the losing side.

A crowd of 10,000 watched the contest in the Chinese capital and speaking after adding another trophy to his glittering resume, an exhausted Mondelo confessed it had been the most testing campaign so far.

"It was the most difficult title and closes a magical cycle of three seasons winning the (Championship) ring consecutively," he said.

"My players have shown great mental strength.

"We knew it would be very difficult but we have lifted the title after going down in the game and then scoring many more in the final minutes than our rivals.

"We had faith in ourselves and enjoying the journey has been the key to this title."

With the prestigious WCBA Finals MVP accolade only eligible for home-grown stars, the award was handed to Yanyan Ji.

The experienced Olympian made some big plays in crunch time of the decisive game and eventually finished with 11 points to her name.

FIBA