KUALA Lumpur of Malaysia and Maurice Lacroix of Japan became the inaugural champions of the Pilipinas United 3x3 League on Sunday at Ayala Malls Manila Bay.
The Malaysian side achieved a run to remember, taking down Half Court Group, 21-15, to become the unlikely victor in the men’s division.
KL punches ticket to Kaohsiung
MVP Ting Chun Hong delivered the goods for Kuala Lumpur, scoring seven points, including the game-clinching putback with 2:55 to spare, to complete the Cinderella run.
Chang Zi Fueng added seven to bag the US$5,000 cash prize as well as a ticket to the FIBA 3x3 Kaohsiung Challenger in October.
Chester Saldua carried the torch for Half Court Group, notching nine in the finale as the Philippine club played without Adeshokan Odou, who hyperextended his knee in the team’s 20-17 semis escape of Solaris.
Half Court Group took home US$2,500 and will earn the ticket in the FIBA 3x3 Manila Challenger in September as the top local team.
Over on the women’s side, Maurice Lacroix accomplished a perfect run, escaping Uratex Dream, 15-13, in the championship game.
Midori Murayama led the way with five points, while MVP Naoko Honda sealed the triumph with her huge jumper with 1:32 to play to make it 14-12 to claim the US$3,000 cash prize.
Uratex had plenty of chances late yet failed to capitalize after Justine Domingo’s errant pass to Renzhu Li and Li’s desperation deuce at the buzzer to settle for bridesmaid honors that came with USD 1,500.
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