SINGAPORE (Singapore) - The first FIBA Intercontinental Cup Final in Singapore, last year. was a brilliant game. The European representatives, Telekom Baskets Bonn, thought they had done enough to win, only to see Lucas Dias's buzzer-beating fadeaway drop in for Sesi Franca to steal the victory and bring the trophy back to South America.
It was only the sixth time that a team from that continent won the event. Now, Quimsa are looking to keep that piece of silverware in South America, and they could become only the second team from Argentina to finish top of the standings.
Who are they?
A team from Santiago del Estero in Argentina, Quimsa were founded 35 years ago, and slowly built their path towards the top through the 1990s, reaching the top division in the early 2000s.
They won the Argentine Liga Nacional for the first time in 2015, with another Argentine Cup in 2009, meaning they actually have more international than national trophies.
Quimsa claimed the FIBA Liga Sudamericana in 2009, and saw their biggest success arrive with the formation of the Basketball Champions League Americas.
The Fusion, as they are nicknamed, stormed to their first BCL Americas title in 2020, the first edition of the event.
The Brazilian teams then took over for the next three editions, until Quimsa decided it's time to make more history. With their 2024 title, they became the first double champion of the BCL Americas, earning their spot at the FIBA Intercontinental Cup in Singapore.
How did they get here?
Basketball works in mysterious ways sometimes. Quimsa were nearly eliminated in the group stage of the BCL Americas last season, finishing in a three-way tie at 3-3 with Nacional from Uruguay and Sao Paulo from Brazil. However, their points difference at +42 was easily the best in the group, sending them through.
They had a rocky Quarter-Finals matchup with Real Esteli from Nicaragua, winning the series 2-1 thanks to their strong Game 3 performance at home.
The Final Four saw them face Hebraica Maccabi from Uruguay, earning a comfy 14-point win and setting up another Final against Flamengo, a rematch from the 2020 championship game.
Once again, it was the club from Argentina prevailing, Brandon Robinson leading Quimsa to their second continental title with a 23-point performance.
Why should we watch them?
If you like Argentina Basketball, you'll enjoy this team, because the vast majority of on coach Leandro Ramella's roster are homegrown players.
They are coming in with just two import players, Tavario Miller adding a bit of Bahamas flavor once again, making his return to Quimsa where he had spent the 2019-20 season, while Raymon Bastardo is a 22-year-old Dominican center. Miller averaged 16.2 points and 9.3 rebounds per game with the Halcones Rojos de Veracruz in Mexico last season.
Quimsa have a lot of returning players, so their chemistry is always a good reason to follow them around, especially with Juan Brussino running the show as one of the top scorers, and usually the man with the most assists on the team.
Emiliano Basabe and Bruno Sansimoni are two other names you should have in your notes, especially Sansimoni who finished the last season shooting 42 percent from beyond the arc across 35 games.
Another two players who had impressive numbers last season are Patricio Tabarez and Nicolas Romano. Both of them are coming in from Ciclista Olimpico, Tabarez had 12.4 points and 5.1 rebounds, while Romano had 14.5 points and 5.2 rebounds in 2023-24.
Who will they play in Singapore?
They take on NBA G League United on September 12 to start Group B proceedings, then jump right back into action on September 13, facing the Tasmania JackJumpers.
If they win the group, they will play the Final on September 15. If they finish second, they move to the Third-Place Game. If they end the group stage behind both the JackJumpers and NBA G League United, they will be in the battle for fifth place on the final day of action.