SINGAPORE – Earlier in March, Todd Blanchfield and William Hickey were in Melbourne playing for Australia National Basketball League outfit Illawarra Hawks in the play-off semi-finals. They suffered a heartbreaking defeat by local side Melbourne United.
But less than three weeks later, the duo, together with Joshua Davey and 18-year-old James O’Donnell, combined to help Australia reclaim the Fiba 3x3 Asia Cup men’s crown at the OCBC Square in Singapore.
Their victory on March 31 proved to be a double delight for Australia, as their women’s team also claimed their fifth Asian title with an 18-13 win over New Zealand.
While the men’s team cruised to a 21-7 win over Iran in the final, victory was far from straightforward.
Unlike in 2023 when Australia held a selection camp to prepare for the competition, the quartet were informed of their participation only three days before the start of the March 27-31 event, which saw over 6,000 spectators across five days.
Blanchfield, who was the only one who played in 2023, said: “It’s a pretty quick turnaround and just credit to the guys. I think it’s a lot to do with how we played on the court, super unselfish and we played winning basketball.”
O’Donnell added: “We just got an e-mail from our manager that we were in the team. Preparing for this was pretty difficult. We didn’t have a camp or anything like that.
“All we could do was grab a 3x3 ball and shoot around wherever we could. We had no place to run and no contact with the coach. But it worked out well.”
Like his teammates, O’Donnell is primarily a basketball player. He was only recently introduced to the 3x3 format.
In 3x3, every made basket inside the arc is worth one point, and every successful shot behind the arc earns two. Victory is awarded when a team reach 21 points or score more than the other after the 10-minute period.
In the men’s final at the 2023 edition, defending champions Australia had lost to Mongolia.
Men’s Most Valuable Player Blanchfield said: “I remember (2023’s defeat) like it was yesterday.
“It left a bad taste in my mouth and to come back and get back on top is where we want to be.”
The 32-year-old got his revenge in the semi-finals as Australia swept aside Mongolia 21-11. The Boomers kept up their intensity against Iran in the final.
While Iran’s Majid Rahimian scored the first basket, Australia won 10 of the next 11 points to race to a 10-2 lead which they never relinquished.
Unlike the hastily assembled men’s squad, all four of Australia’s women’s 3x3 players returned to defend their 2023 triumph.
Building on the bronze medal they won at the Fiba 3x3 World Cup in May 2023, the same quartet defeated New Zealand 18-13 in the final.
Anneli Maley, who scored eight points in the final, said: “The challenge for us is we don’t get to play all year round. Every team have improved so much since last year. They all pushed us.
“The teams in the Asia Cup are stepping up and they’re coming for our title.”
In the bronze-medal match, the Mongolian men’s and women’s teams saw off New Zealand and Chinese Taipei respectively.
The top three teams at the Asia Cup have qualified for the 2025 World Cup in Copenhagen, Denmark.
