FIBA 3×3 World Tour 2017: Saskatoon ready
The sixth edition of the FIBA 3×3 World Tour – the flagship event of the 3×3 professional circuit – starts on Saturday in Saskatoon, Canada and will visit a total of eight cities with 7 Masters leading up to the Bloomage Beijing Final on October 21-22.
Twelve teams will battle it out over two days in the heart of Saskatoon to secure the first ticket on offer to qualify for the Final.
The reigning champions Ljubljana (SLO) and another 3 teams from the Top 10 in the FIBA 3×3 Federation Ranking will battle it out in the “Paris of the Prairies” in front of the iconic Delta Bessborough hotel.
Local favorites Team Saskatoon (CAN) are currently 3rd in the Team Ranking while Liman (SRB) rank 8th and have shined in qualifying tournaments (finished 1,2 and 3 in the 3 challengers they played). Hamamatsu (JPN) finished 2nd overall at the World Tour last season and ranked 9th in the Ranking before the start of the tournament.
Pool action will take place on July 15, with the top two teams from each pool earning a direct ticket to the Quarter-Finals. The Knock-Out Rounds – culminating with the final – will be held on July 16. Only the winners of each Masters earn a direct slot to the World Tour Final. The rest will get their ticket based on the World Tour standings after the last Masters.
The number one 3×3 team in the world (and 2014 and 2015 World Tour winners) Novi Sad Al Wahda (UAE) qualified for the Saskatoon Masters but were unable to obtain a visa in time for the event. They have however already clinched their ticket to the 6 other Masters: Utsunomiya (JPN), Prague (CZE), Lausanne (SUI), Debrecen (HUN), Chengdu (CHN) and Mexico City (MEX).
