Stojacic leads Ub Huishan NE to title at FIBA 3x3 Fribourg Challenger 2024

FRIBOURG (Switzerland) - Superstar Strahinja Stojacic spectacularly returned to lead No.1 Ub Huishan NE (SRB) to the title at the FIBA 3x3 Fribourg Challenger 2024 on July 6. 

Here's what happened in the eighth Challenger of the season.

The winner: Ub Huishan NE (SRB)

They were: No.1 fewest points allowed & highlights

Just a couple of weeks ago, there was doubt over whether top-ranked Ub Huishan NE had been overtaken following a titleless start to the season. 

After a statement at the Chengdu Masters, Ub are firmly back in business as they proved in Fribourg to romp to the title in an unbeaten campaign. 

It was a different looking team from Chengdu, but Stojacic issued a reminder over why he is the best player on the planet with his first MVP of the season. He dominated the stats and finished No.1 in player-value (52). 

Ub's depth was also underlined with big fella Nenad Nerandzic playing a starring role and he finished the tournament with 27 points. 

The Serbs needed a huge game from Marko Brankovic to get past dangerous Kandava Turiba (LAT) in an astonishing comeback on Day One.  Ub looked down and out trailing 20-13 before returning from the brink in a turnaround that had to be seen to be believed. 

Brankovic capped a triple-five with a buzzer beater and that was the closest any team came to toppling Ub. 

 

As they've done countless times over the years, Ub stepped on the gas in the knockout stage as they cruised past Paris (FRA), host Fribourg (SUI) and rival Amsterdam (NED) en route to a second title in as many weeks. 

The runner-up: Amsterdam (NED)

The Dutch Masters came short of a second title of the season, but again showed why they are one of the heavyweights on the pro circuit. 

After breezing through pool play, Amsterdam had to claw past surprise package Vlasenica (BIH) in an epic quarter-final that went into OT.

The Dutch turned to - you guessed it - superstar Worthy de Jong, who submitted probably the best individual game of the tournament with an insane stat line of 14 points, 11 rebounds and 6 highlights. 

It was sniper Arvin Slagter who stepped up against in-form Liman (SRB) in the semis before Amsterdam fell to Ub in a battle of powerhouses.

Amsterdam were paced by the one-two punch of de Jong and Slagter, who combined for 65 points but it wasn't quite enough. 

The Final: Ub Huishan NE 18-Amsterdam 10

There was a lot of hype over this dream final between the top two seeds, but Ub had regained their swagger and were on a mission. 

A lot of eyeballs were focused on the individual match-up between Strahinja Stojacic and Worthy de Jong - arguably the best players in the world - and 'Doctor Strange' made a fast start by going bang, bang. 

It wasn't long before de Jong responded with the two-ball, but the Dutch superstar failed to get his radar right as Ub stepped up the defensive intensity. 

Marko Brankovic made a couple of buckets around the rim and Ub maintained their edge. 

Ub gained a stranglehold with a 9-0 run as big fella Nenad Nerandzic dominated the paint. He added three straight buckets as Ub's lead stretched into double figures and they cruised to the title. 

Nerandzic stole the show in a game filled with superstars to finish with 8 points and 11 rebounds as Ub's resurgence was complete. 

 

The reward: Three tickets to the Wuxi Masters

With third-placed Liman having already secured a ticket, Ub Huishan NE, Amsterdam and Fribourg booked their spots to the Wuxi Masters on October 1-2.

Final Standings:
1. Ub Huishan NE (SRB)
2. Amsterdam (NED)
3. Liman (SRB)
4. Fribourg (SUI)
5. Hangzhou (CHN)

Top Scorers:
1. Worthy de Jong (Amsterdam, NED) 36 pts
2. Strahinja Stojacic (Ub Huishan NE, SRB) 30 pts
3. Arvin Slagter (Amsterdam, NED) 29 pts
4. Nenad Nerandzic (Ub Huishan NE, SRB) 27 pts
5. Dejan Majstorovic (Ub Huishan NE, SRB) 27 pts

Key Stats:
- Goran Vidovic had a monster tournament for Hangzhou (CHN) to finish third in player-value (40.9) and he also had two triple-fives. 
- Fribourg's Natan Jurkovitz continued his strong form this season with a commanding performance of 8 points and 8 rebounds against Versailles (FRA) on Day One. 
-  Liman's easy quarter-final victory over Kandava Turiba  was the fastest game of the tournament at 5'53 of playing time. 

FIBA