AMMAN (Jordan) - Emmett Adair deservingly earned Most Valuable Player honors in the FIBA U18 Asia Cup 2024 on Monday night at the Prince Hamza Hall.
The 2.05 M (6'9") forward took home the competition's highest individual award after helping Australia to a six-game sweep of the tournament on the way to their second championship in the continental youth contest in as many appearances.
Adair contributed 19 points on 8-of-14 shooting from the field and 5 rebounds in their 96-33 victory over New Zealand in the Final to secure the crown.
He went on to finish the meet with per-game averages of 13.3 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks as he hiked his production in the knockout stages.
In winning the plum, Adair led the All-Star Five made up of teammate Jacob Furphy, Junior Tall Blacks' Tamatoa Isaac, Jordan's Saif Saleh, and Zhang Boyuan of China.
Furphy played a big role as well in Australia's return to the top with per-game norms of 16.8 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 2.3 assists. In the Final, the 1.93 M (6'4") guard was the team's top-scorer with 21 points, alongside 7 rebounds and 4 assists.
Isaac, on the other hand, was the tournament's third leading scorer with 17.3 points an outing and the top assists man with 5.7 to lead New Zealand to the Final.
Saleh was one of only three players to average a double-double with 16.9 points and 10.9 rebounds per game, leading the young Falcons not just to their first Semi-Finals appearance but also to the FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup after almost 30 years.
Zhang, lastly, was a major factor behind China's third straight bronze-medal finish through his 17.2 points on 43.2-percent shooting from deep per game.
FIBA