Bucknor and Sir help Team Saskatoon win FIBA 3x3 Challenger
Edmonton natives and Team Alberta alumni Jermaine Bucknor and Steve Sir helped Team Saskatoon win the FIBA 3x3 Challenger event in Hangzhou, China, this weekend.
Saskatoon, which also featured Michael Lieffers and Michael Linklater, defeated The Hauge (Netherlands) 21-9 in the Finals on Sunday.
The result earns Saskatoon an automatic berth in the FIBA 3x3 Masters event that will take place in Chengdu, China, Sept. 29-30.
This was the second Challenger title of 2018 for Team Saskatoon, which also finished first at the Goyang, South Korea, event in April with a lineup that featured Sir, Lieffers, Linklater, along with Team Alberta alum Jordan Baker of Edmonton.
Team Saskatoon won three games in a span of about three hours on Sunday, including a 21-12 victory over the world’s No. 5-ranked team, Riga (Latvia) 21-12 in the Quarter-Finals, and a 19-16 Semi-Final triumph against Kranj (Slovenia). Saskatoon advanced to the Quarter-Finals after finishing with a 1-1 record in Pool D on Saturday.
Sir, who is the reigning FIBA 3x3 World Tour Shootout champion, is in his second year with Team Saskatoon, while Bucknor was competing in a FIBA 3x3 Challenger event for the first time. The foursome of Bucknor, Sir, Lieffers and Linklater also represented Canada at the recent 2018 FIBA 3x3 World Cup in The Philippines.
The first FIBA 3x3 Challenger event in North America will be held at West Edmonton Mall’s Ice Palace on Sept. 22-23.
