Croatia, France and USA, at full speed in Day 2 of FIBA 3x3 U18 World Cup

DEBRECEN (Hungary) -  Croatia and France in the boys competition and USA on the girls side went pedal to the metal in the second day of FIBA 3x3 U18 World Cup in Debrecen, as they ended all of their games before regulation.

Game of the day: Germany vs. France (girls)

In the pool of death, the rematch of the last year’s FIBA 3x3 U17 Europe Cup semifinal was one for the ages. Germany was in the lead for almost all the game, with France chasing them in a fast paced, high scoring affair.

Down by three with 40 seconds to go, 18-15, the French put all their hopes in the hands of Lana Petiteau. And she delivered big time scoring three points in 23 seconds, including a tying two pointer to send the game to overtime.

She then scored a potential game winner, ruled out for a traveling violation, before Marija Ilic hit the dagger for Germany, final score 20-18 and revenged the last year’s loss.

The teams

Boys

Croatia looked ready to go to the next level, after winning the U17 Europe Cup last year and handled both Thailand and Estonia before the 10 minutes mark. They faced some tough opposition against Estonia, who was leading 12-11 with less than three minutes to go.

But Vito Mlatac caught instant fire and scored seven of his eight points in the remaining of the game, Roko Cetina added three and Croatia finished with a 10-1 run to seal the deal.

They will face Latvia in Day 4 in a battle for the first place of Pool B, with both teams already qualified in the quarter finals.

France cruised in Pool D, with two easy wins against Slovenia (21-6) and Kyrgyzstan (21-11). Slovenia bounced back from the debacle against the French team and won against Ukraine, 21-19, so they still have high hopes for a place in the quarter finals.

Girls

USA were in the beast mode against Egypt (21-5) and Latvia (21-11), but they’ll have much more to worry in Day 4 against Poland and New Zealand. The Polish side was also dominant, with two wins and they are the main contenders to the first place in Pool D.

In the pool of death Germany emerged as leader, with two hard-fought wins against France and Spain, both games decided by one possession. Les Bleus and La Furia Roja have one win eachand will meet in a crucial duel in the last day of pool phase, while Hungary, also having one victory, is still in contention for a place among the eight best teams in the world.

The players

In double figures against Kyrgyzstan, the French scoring machine Zakaria Mechergui finished the day with 19 points, while Roko Cetina from Croatia had more drives than a delivery guy on holiday season, with 12 of his 15 points coming from inside.

Magdalena Kloska had 12 of her 19 points from beyond the arc,for Poland, while last year’s winner Sarah Strong from USAtorched Egypt with 11 points and finished the day with 13 in total. And if team effort is the game, then Germany is the name, as Ilic, Rawer and Soltau have all nine points each after the first two pool games.

Day 3

We’ll find out today the first teams that will advance to the quarter finals, from Pools A and C in both boys and girlscompetition. Will Hungary boys make their home fans proud? Will 9th seed Mexico advance in QF against the odds? Just follow our livestream and you’ll be for sure highly entertained by the future 3x3 stars.