In the men's bronze medal game, Serbia regrouped with a convincing 21-10 victory over Belgium, whose fairy tale run ended after a spectacular rise in 3x3 this year.įormer number one 3x3 player in the world Dusan Bulut finished the Olympics on a high with 7 points, while Belgium sharpshooter Thibaut Vervoort - who had a remarkable trio of game-winning shots in the tournament - didn't have any heroics left but still led his team with 5 points. ROC will be forever remembered for delivering the shock of the Olympics with a stunning 21-10 defeat of No.1 seed Serbia in the first men's semi-final, with their star shooter Alexander Zuev outscoring the entire Serbian team (11-10). ROC had been unfancied coming in despite being the No.2 seed and boasting a slew of young talent, who made a smooth transition from the U23 category, after winning the FIBA 3x3 U23 World Cup together in 2019.
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Like he has done many times on the FIBA 3x3 World Tour, Lasmanis was the hero with a brilliant two to win gold for Latvia as he was mobbed on the court by his jubilant teammates.
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In the men's gold medal game, a confident ROC came out scorching hot from deep to gain the early edge before Latvia fought back through star duo Lasmanis and Nauris Miezis.įittingly, the last game of the tournament went to the wire with both teams going shot for shot and the drama heightened by Latvia sharpshooter Edgars Krumins hobbling off with an ankle injury. Tournament top scorer Lasmanis sank a huge two from the left wing to cap his game-high 10 points as Latvia downed the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) 21-18 in a thrilling gold medal game, while USA beat ROC 18-15 to triumph in the women's.
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TOKYO (Japan) - Latvia superstar Karlis Lasmanis hit a shot for the ages and USA confirmed their credentials as the two teams became the first 3x3 Olympic gold medallists after a momentous finale at the Aomi Urban Sports Park in Tokyo on July 28, 2021.