FIBA 3x3 tourney brought three years of thrills to Saskatoon

Gasper Ovnik drives the ball for Team Piran.

    As soon as Adin Kavgic’s long two-pointer went in, the party was over for the FIBA 3x3 World Tour Saskatoon Masters tournament.

    The 32-year-old forward’s shot from beyond the arch finished off a 21-14 championship game victory for Slovenian’s Team Piran against Serbia’s Team Vrbas on Sunday at the intersection of 4^th Avenue and 21^st street.

    The win allowed Team Piran to take home a US$30,000 prize for first place. Team Vrbas was awarded US$20,000 for second place.

    This marked the third straight year Saskatoon has hosted a FIBA 3x3 World Tour Masters stop, and Saskatoon’s three-year agreement with FIBA to hold this event has come to an end.

    The three editions of the tournament have allowed hoops fans in “The Bridge City” to see a unique brand of high-action basketball in a three-versus-three format.

Anze Srebovt passes the ball to a Team Piran teammate.

    All games go to 21 points or whatever the final score is after 10 minutes. Shots inside the arch are worth one point and shots outside of the arch are worth two points.

    There is a 12-second shot clock, and the ball has to be cleared beyond the arch. After a basket is scored, it is live for the other team to take possession where the ball falls.

    Under these rules, it feels like the play is non-stop.

    Locally, the tournament received an extra boost thanks to the success of Team Saskatoon during the first two years.

    In 2017 and 2018, Team Saskatoon was comprised of Michael Linklater, Michael Lieffers, Nolan Brudehl and Edmonton, Alta., product Steve Sir.

    Linklater, Lieffers and Brudehl are best remembered in Saskatoon for helping the University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s basketball team capture their first and to date only U Sports national men’s basketball title in 2010.

    At the FIBA World Tour Masters stop in Saskatoon in 2017, Team Saskatoon made the event’s championship game falling to 21-14 to Team Ljubljana from Slovenia.

The FIBA 3x3 World Tour Masters stop contains a cool dunk contest.

    During that run to the title game, it felt like Team Saskatoon was experiencing a Huskies nostalgia tour. With the noise that was present, you would have thought you were at a Huskies playoff hoops game at the Physical Activity Complex on the U of Saskatchewan campus.

    The two sections of stands that are brought down from the SaskTel Centre for this hoops event were overflowing with spectators when Team Saskatoon hit the court.

    In 2018, Team Saskatoon made it to the semifinal round of the playoffs falling 21-15 to Team Novi Sad from Serbia.

    Team Saskatoon went into this year’s tournament with a revamped lineup. Linklater was the only returnee, and the 36-year-old said this year’s event in Saskatoon would be his final FIBA 3x3 tournament.

Michael Linklater in action with Team Saskatoon in 2018.

    Linklater, who also plays professionally with the Saskatchewan Rattlers of the Canadian Elite Basketball League, said he will be retiring from competitive basketball once the Rattlers season comes to an end.

    Along with Linklater, Team Saskatoon’s roster contained Troy Gottselig, Willie Murdaugh and Shane Osayande.

    Gottselig was another former member of the Huskies 2010 U Sport national championship team, and he played with Team Saskatoon when it was first formed in 2010.

    Osayande was a more recent graduate from the Huskies program and currently plays with the Rattlers.

    Murdaugh, who is 49-years-old, was another former member of Team Saskatoon, who came out for a final hurrah.

Steve Sir in action with Team Saskatoon in 2018.

    Sir was still playing in the tournament with his hometown Team Edmonton.

    The new look Team Saskatoon failed to qualify for the playoff round losing both its pool play games in the event’s opening day on Saturday.  

    Team Saskatoon fell 22-18 in its first game to Team Liman from Serbia and dropped a 16-14 final to Team Kranj from Slovenia.

    While Linklater didn’t experience a storybook finish at this year’s tourney, he will go down as a player who had a huge positive impact on his First Nations community. Linklater showed what type of doors could be opened in basketball as a player.

    Despite the fact Team Saskatoon didn’t take part in Sunday’s playoff action, spectators still came out filling about 80 per cent of the stands. The local Serbian contingent vocally supported teams from their home country.

The FIBA 3x3 World Tour Masters tourney bring out the crowds.

    The action on the court was phenomenal with four out of the seven playoff game being decided by either one or two points.

    The dunk and shootout contests were sweet.  Justin Darlington from Ajax, Ont., won the dunk contest taking home a US$2,500 prize. Kyle Landry of Team Edmonton claimed the shootout contest to capture a US$500 prize.

    The championship game looked like it would come down to the wire as Team Piran led Team Vrbas 15-13 with three minutes to play. Team Piran closed the contest with a 6-1 run to pick up the win.

Adin Kavgic cheers his championship clinching shot.

    Guard Gasper Ovnik from Team Piran was named the MVP of the event.

    You can bet the popularity of the FIBA 3x3 World Tour Saskatoon Masters tournament played a part in the CEBL electing to put a team in Saskatoon.

    For the last two years, Saskatoon’s FIBA 3x3 World Tour stop has included a sizable beer gardens that has hosted an outdoor party.

    As the FIBA 3x3 World Tour stop was held in conjunction with the Taste of Saskatchewan festival, downtown Saskatoon became an extra busy place.

    FIBA 3x3 World Tour Saskatoon Masters tournament became something a sizable number of people in Saskatoon looked forward to in the summer. It could also be argued the fact it was held in “The Bridge City” for a three-year stay insured it didn’t become a stale event.

Team Piran is all smiles after a championship victory in Saskatoon.

    With three-versus-three basketball becoming a new sport for 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, that style of basketball will continue to draw interest in the future.

    The fact the FIBA 3x3 World Tour Masters stop enjoyed the success it did might mean Saskatoon could one day host some other FIBA event. For now, it was great to see how warmly the FIBA 3x3 World Tour Saskatoon Masters tournament was received in this three-year run.

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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