SINGAPORE (Singapore) - Once the 2024 FIBA Intercontinental Cup draw was completed, pitting the Australia-New Zealand NBL champs and the NBA G League United in the same group, it was clear we're in for a fun ride.
They finally faced off at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on Saturday, and delivered the closest game of the FIBA Intercontinental Cup 2024 so far.
The G Leaguers were up by 14 in the third quarter, but the Tasmania JackJumpers erased the deficit and claimed a 4-point lead in the final stanza, only to see United's Brodric Thomas become the hero of the day.
The shooting guard knocked down a big three to tie the score at 72-all heading into the final minute. Jordon Crawford gave the JackJumpers another two-point lead, but Thomas was fouled on a three-pointer and made two of three to make it 74-74 with one possession left for each team.
Coach Scott Roth wanted to regain the lead by drawing up a play for Milton Doyle, but the go-to guy for the JackJumpers slipped and fell out of bounds, sending the ball back to United with 14 ticks on the clock left.
Thomas got his number dialed by coach Paul Hewitt once more, and drew another foul with 1.8 remaining to play. This time he made both free throws, and since the JackJumpers turned the ball over on the ensuing inbound pass, it proved to be the final points scored in a 76-74 win for the Americans.
The NBA G League United team thus won the group with a 2-0 record, finishing ahead of the JackJumpers, at 1-1 ,and Quimsa, at 0-2.
United will now move to the championship game against Unicaja on Sunday, a bout that Charlie Brown Jr is certainly looking forward to.
"First of all, we need to get some rest, watch some film, execute, do what we do best. We're in the championship game for a reason, we know it's gonna be hard, tough, but we just gotta stay locked in and keep that belief in each other," the hot-shooting forward said after knocking down five threes and getting a team-high 23 points.
Clutch hero Brodric Thomas finished with 12, as United once again played with just nine players.
Jordon Crawford and Milton Doyle combined for 47 points on the other side, but fell just short of becoming the first Australian team in the Final of the FIBA Intercontinental Cup.
Al Riyadi Beirut outlast Petro De Luanda
Instead, they will play the Third-Place Game against Al Riyadi Beirut. The Basketball Champions League Asia winners outlasted Petro De Luanda from Angola 80-75, climbing to 1-1 in Group A, finishing behind the 2-0 Unicaja and ahead of the 0-2 Luanda team.
It was a true game of swings, as BAL champions had a 9 point lead midway through the second quarter, only for Riyadi to bounce back and go up by 13 as Manny Harris made a tough and-one with seven minutes to play.
That was just enough to make it smooth sailing the rest of the way, avoid a dramatic finish and get a chance to finish third on Sunday.
Harris was easily the best player on the floor, scoring 12 of his 22 points already in the first quarter, and he also grabbed 9 rebounds with 5 assists and 5 steals.
Elmedin Kikanovic scored 15 on the day, Amir Saoud had 12 big ones off the bench, while Hayk Gyokchyan did a bit of everything with 15 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists.
The win is even more impressive considering the fact Wael Arakji played only six minutes in this one.
Abou Gakou scored 20 in 25 minutes off the bench for Petro De Luanda in a losing effort. The BAL champions will play the fifth-place game against Quimsa next.
FIBA