MIES (Switzerland) - Israel claimed the inaugural FIBA U15 Skills Challenge 2021 title with a thrilling one-point triumph over Mongolia in the Final.

The competition saw 32 teams participate from four different regions. Israel prevailed with just one defeat from their seven encounters, a run that culminated in their 107-108 victory in the showdown for Gold.

In the battle for Bronze, Bulgaria registered an impressive score of 101 points to overcome China for the third step on the podium as they bounced back from a 106-111 defeat against Mongolia - who won last year's FIBA U17 Skills Challenge - in the Semi-Finals.

Israel came through the initial group phase with a 2-1 record with their only loss of the tournament coming against Venezuela, though the South American side would miss out on the knockout stages as Madagascar advanced.

Bulgaria, China, Egypt, Estonia, Jordan, Mongolia and Tunisia had all made perfect starts with 3-0 records in the group phase. However, Egypt, Estonia and Jordan all fell at the Round of 16 stage, while Tunisia were knocked out by China in the Quarter-Finals.

Puerto Rico set the only double-digit score of the week in their 93-121 success against Andorra as they advanced all the way to the Quarter-Finals.

Teams competed remotely in a course that tested skills such as dribbling, passing and shooting against the clock, with the team with the fewest points winning the contest.

FIBA