NZ, Philippines excel on opening day
Tribune News Network
Doha
New Zealand and Philiphines claimed opening day honours at the FIBA 3x3 Youth Nations League 2025 - Asia-Pacific 1 - Stop 1 which commenced at the Qatar Basketball Federation (QBF) Hall in Al Gharafa on Wednesday.
In the men's division, team Qatar, comprising Zineeddine Bedri, Nazar Mahmoud, Ahmad Saeid Mohamad and Hamad Yassin Mousa, also made a strong start, securing two convincing wins.
Qatar dominated their opener against Chinese Taipei, securing a 22-8 win, and followed by a hard-fought 22-14 victory over Singapore.
However, Qatar's momentum was halted in the final later, when New Zealand cruised to a 21-12 win to take full points on the opening day while staying unbeaten.
Qatar's U-23 women's team, consisted of Salha Ismail M H Al Ali, Mona Abdelmonem A Elsayed, Sama Mahmoud E Gasir and Lamis Gamal Hanafi, faced a challenging day, going up against formidable opponents.
They suffered heavy defeats to the Philippines (2-21) and New Zealand (2-21), ending their day without a win.
In the women's final, Philippines defeated Chinese Taipei 21-10 to go top of the table.
While New Zealand led the men's standings after Day 1 with a 3-0 record and a points average of 20.3, Qatar finished in second place with a 18-point average.
The Philippines and Singapore each had won a game each while Chinese Taipei and Indonesia failed to secure wins.
On Thursday, Qatar men will take on Indonesia and the Philippines, while the women's team battle against the Philippines and Singapore.
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