MANILA North’s fling with glory in the Fiba 3x3 World Tour in Abu Dhabi proved to be short-lived.
Calvin Abueva and Co. ran smack into a wall in defending champion Novi Sad Al Wahda, 21-13, early Saturday to bow out of title contention in the two-day meet.
The quarterfinal loss came less than 24 hours after the Filipinos pulled off a stunning 16-14 win over fancied Doha of Qatar to advance in the knockout stage of the tournament
The win by Novi Sad, bannered by Domovic Bulut, over Manila North was the second in the last two months against the same team which it also defeated, 21-14, during the finals of the meet’s Manila leg held in August.
Manila North’s finish also equaled the same feat achieved by Terrence Romeo and the Manila West during last year’s finals of the World Tour staged in Sendai, Japan.
Novi Sad will now meet Trbovlje of Slovenia in the semifinals. Trbovlje advanced after a 22-10 win over Denver, USA in the Final Eight.
The other semifinals pairing will pit New York Harlem, USA against Kranj also of Slovenia.
NY Harlem USA eked out a thrilling 22-21 win over Ljubljana of Slovenia, while Kranj dispatched Rio of Brazil, 19-16.
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph
NOTICE ON UNAUTHORIZED AND UNLAWFUL USE, PUBLICATION, AND/OR DISSEMINATION OF SPIN.PH CONTENT: Please be notified that any unauthorized and unlawful use, publication, and/or dissemination of Spin.ph’s content and/or materials is a direct violation of its legal and exclusive rights to the same, and shall be subject to appropriate legal action/s.
