DOHA (Oct. 11, 2023) – Team Miami finished third at the 2023 FIBA 3x3 Doha Challenger in Doha, Qatar, on Wednesday. By virtue of their third-place result, Miami punched a ticket to the final FIBA 3x3 World Tour Masters Oct. 28-29 in Ahu Dhabi, UAE. The top-3 performance is Miami’s sixth in their last seven Challenger or Masters appearances.
The semifinal featured Miami and No. 1 seeded Ub Huishan (Serbia), with Ub taking the 19-15 decision as time expired. Miami trailed the whole 10 minutes but remained competitive throughout. The majority of the scoring came from 1-point range as both teams struggled from beyond the arc and went a combined 3-for-23 from 2-point distance. Jimmer Fredette, Miami’s leading scorer, hit the squad’s lone 2-pointer and finished with six points and four rebounds.
In their quarterfinal game against Paris, Miami secured a 21-15 victory thanks to a balanced offensive effort by all four teammates. Kareem Maddox and Canyon Barry led the team with six points apiece after making each of their 1-point shot attempts (five for Maddox and three for Barry). Dylan Travis and Fredette rounded out the scoring with five and four points, respectively.
Tuesday’s pool play action was postponed in the middle of Miami’s second pool game vs. Jeddah (Saudi Arabia) due to unsafe playing conditions. The game resumed Wednesday morning with Miami ahead 12-8 with 5:25 to play. Miami went on to seal the win 21-17 and move into knockout play. Their 2-0 pool play record was bolstered by a tournament-opening 22-15 win over Aachen Der Stamm (Germany).
Ub went on to defeat Beijing 21-18 to win the Doha Challenger title.
The quartet of Barry, Fredette, Maddox and Travis is set to next represent USA Basketball at the 2023 Pan American Games Oct. 21-23 in Santiago, Chile.