NAMIBIA’s national 3×3 men’s under 23 basketball team lost all its matches but managed to finish as the 14th ranked team out of 16 teams at the Anoca World Beach Games which were concluded in Doha, Qatar last week.
Namibia gave a good account in their opening match before going down 20-14 to Ukraine on 14 October.
On the same day the team took on Mongolia, and once again ended on the losing side, going down 21-12.
In their final match against Jordan the next day, they remained competitive throughout before losing 21-15.
On completion of the tournament Namibia was ranked 14th out of the 16 competing nations, which put them above the 15th ranked Togo and 16th ranked Uganda.
Team player John Tjirimuje said he had been inspired by their progress.
“The greatest lesson was noticing with every game that we, as a nation, are able to compete at this level and go toe to toe with any basketball powerhouse,” he said.
Team captain, Mantius Amukoshi said: “I am proud of my team and for how far we have come. This is only the beginning of the country’s journey towards becoming a household name in the 3×3 world. We have seen what the other teams have to offer and now we know what to work on and improve not only as a team but as a nation.”
The finals were played on 16 October with Russia beating Brazil 21-19 in a nail biting final, while Mongolia beat Ukraine 20-16 in the bronze medal play-off.
