Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
Manila North bowed to defending world champion Novisad Alwahda, 21-14, in the final of Fiba 3×3 World Tour Manila Masters Sunday at Robinson’s Place Manila.
Novisad, a team composed of Serbian players Dusan Domovic Bulut, Dejan Majstorovic, Marko Savic and Marko Zdero, spaced the floor and was deadly from the outside.
Majstorovic caught fire and caused problems for Manila North, which had a hard time recovering from a huge hole without a steady outside shooter on the floor.
As finalists, Manila North and Novisad earned a slot in the World Tour Final in Abu Dhabi, UAE on Oct. 15-16.
“Very happy with our performance. We had two teams who made it to the semifinals because the competition here is very tough,” said Manila North and West head coach Eric Altamirano.
“This team really thrived on effort. They don’t have the outside shooting but they made it to the finals with their effort,” Altamirano said.
The game got testy with Karl Dehesa and Savic getting really physical. The two had to be separated to avoid what could’ve been a brawl. CFC