Australia and China win FIBA 3×3 Asia Cup 2022

SINGAPORE – Australia’s men and China’s women won the FIBA 3×3 Asia Cup 2022, which took place in the footsteps of Singapore’s iconic Marina Bay Sands on July 6-10.

Australia completed a three-peat after defeating New Zealand 21-17 in a thriller of a final. Sharpshooter Andrew Steel had ice in his veins to finish with 8 points along with big man Daniel Johnson.

New sensation Jesse Wagstaff wrapped up the title with a layup and also won MVP after leading the scoring charts with 42 points from 5 games.  He was joined on the Team of the Tournament by New Zealand’s Nikau McCullough and 23-year-old Jiaren Zhao, who led China to a podium finish.

In the men’s bronze medal game, a youthful China repeated their result from 2019 after surviving a furious challenge from the Philippines to prevail 20-18. Zeyi Liu was unstoppable in the paint to finish with 9 points, while Philippines star Almond Vosotros finished a spectacular tournament with 8 points.

In the women’s category, Tokyo Olympic and Crelan FIBA 3×3 World Cup 2022 bronze medalist China won their first-ever Asia Cup after shutting down defending champs Australia to win 14-10 and cap a dominant run.

Towering ZhiTing Zhang scored a game-high 6 points while Kun Huang added 5 points as China ended Australia’s hopes of a repeat.

China superstar Lili Wang was named MVP after once again showing her liking for the big stage having made the Team of the Tournament at the recent World Cup.

Joining Wang in the Team of the Tournament were rising star Anneli Maley (Australia) and bucket getter Kimberley Pierre-Louis, who led surprise packet Indonesia to a fairy-tale podium finish from qualifying after topping the overall scoring charts with 54 points from 5 games.

In the women’s bronze medal game, Indonesia created history with their first Asia Cup medal after upsetting Japan 21-17 in a tense clash. Pierre-Louis continued her scoring binge with an insane 14 points to crush the hearts of Japan who were hoping to repeat their bronze finish from 2019.

The gold medals were presented by FIBA Secretary General Andreas Zagklis and International Olympic Committee vice-president Ng Ser Miang.

Both Australia and China are now qualified for the FIBA 3×3 World Cup 2023.

It was the fifth edition of the Asia Cup, the first since 2019, and played in Singapore, where 3×3 was memorably unleashed to the world at the Youth Olympic Games in 2010.