RESULTS

CONSTANTA, Romania (Sept. 18, 2022) - The Canadian Women’s 3x3 Team are 2022 FIBA 3x3 Women’s Series Champions.Canada went undefeated in Constanta, Romania en route to defeating France 21-16 in the Final behind a 14-point effort from Michelle Plouffe and nine rebounds from Katherine Plouffe.

“It’s been a crazy, crazy summer,'' M. Plouffe said. “I just feel so blessed to be here. I’m just so grateful. I love these ladies with my whole heart and I'm so happy to share this with them.”‍

‍It was a comeback victory for the Canadians as they fell behind 12-5 before using a 9-0 run to go back in front by three, 15-12, with 4:31 remaining. ‍

‍Staying calm when France took their initial lead was a key component in Canada’s comeback.

“I think we had confidence in each other, we knew we could make stops,” M. Plouffe said. “For us, our defence is really important. We know if we can make stops, we can turn them into buckets, so we just stayed consistent. We were gritty… I'm so proud of us.”‍

‍M. Plouffe shot 3-for-3 from distance and 5-for-9 from inside the arc. ‍

‍The Plouffe sisters scored Canada’s final six points against France, with a drive and score from M. Plouffe, plus a free throw putting Canada ahead 17-13 with 3:52 remaining.‍

‍K. Plouffe had a block and then scored on a layup to make it 18-13 Canada before France scored three straight baskets to get back within two points, 18-16, with 1:49 remaining. A reverse layup for Laetitia Guapo brought France within three, but M. Plouffe and K. Plouffe each scored inside to make it 20-16 Canada with 27 seconds remaining. M. Plouffe then drove to the rim and scored, winning the game for Canada at 21-16 with nine seconds remaining on the clock.‍

‍Canada defeated Germany 21-8 in the semifinal behind a nine-point effort from M. Plouffe while Crozon added seven rebounds and K. Plouffe added six rebounds. Canada dominated the glass in the win, outrebounding an undermanned Germany squad 21-4. Germany was down a player in the game after Alexandra Wilke was injured in the team’s previous game.

Svenja Brunckhorst led Germany with six points in the loss.

‍Canada jumped out to an early 9-3 lead before Sonja Greinacher scored to make it a five-point game with 6:04 remaining. M. Plouffe came right back scoring on back-to-back possessions for Canada and then M. Plouffe assisted K. Plouffe on an easy score inside to put Canada in front 12-4 with 5:09 remaining. ‍

‍After the teams traded baskets, Bosch found Crozon under the hoop for a lay-in to make it 15-7 Canada with 4:08 remaining. After a free throw for Crozon, Canada led 16-7, and then K. Plouffe found a cutting Bosch for an easy layup to extend the lead to double figures. M. Plouffe crashed the boards to get an offensive rebound off a K. Plouffe miss and then Crozon scored on a layup to cap a 7-0 run that gave Canada the 20-7 lead with 1:47 remaining. Brunckhorst scored again for Germany, but Bosch sealed the win on a driving layup with 1:38 remaining. ‍

‍“We had lofty goals when we came here to take it all home,” M. Plouffe said after defeating Germany. “It was step by step. We played a great Germany team that has really pushed us since we started 3x3. Obviously, we took a loss from them in the last final. We just have so much respect for all of the players on this tour.”‍

‍In their first game on Sunday, Canada defeated Lithuania 21-12 with 1:38 remaining behind a seven-point, five-rebound effort from M. Plouffe and six points and six rebounds from K. Plouffe. Kacie Bosch added six boards and Paige Crozon had five points in a well-rounded team effort.‍

‍Canada shot 15-for-20 from inside the arc compared to Lithuania’s 5-for-17 shooting, while both teams connected on three two-point shots.‍

‍Canada led 3-0 before a two-point shot for Egle Zabotkaite got Lithuania on the board. Canada scored the next five points of the game, with four coming from Crozon who started the game hitting from all over the court. A reverse layup for K. Plouffe made it 8-2 Canada with 7:09 remaining.‍

‍After the teams traded two-point shots, another reverse layup, this time from Bosch, kept Canada’s lead at six with 5:58 remaining. A second two-point shot from Zabotkaite got Lithuania within four with 4:27 remaining, but M. Plouffe scored inside and then K. Plouffe connected on a corner two-point shot to make it 15-8 with 3:49 remaining. ‍

‍A steal from M. Plouffe led to an assist to K. Plouffe for a layup with a minute remaining. Crozon then found a cutting M. Plouffe for a layup to make it 20-12 with 29 seconds on the clock. On Canada's next possession, M. Plouffe found K. Plouffe for the layup to make it 21-12 with 22.2 remaining on the clock to punch Canada’s ticket to the semifinals.

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