Sarah to Represent 3x3 for the US (merged thread)

[EricLA]

I'm just glad Sarah wasn't injured. Probably good experience for her. She's a smart kid and I'm sure could look at how the games were played and would think "We/I could have done ____ better".

I don't think Sarah is a natural vocal leader. Hopefully over time she becomes more outgoing on the court from a leadership perspective...

 

[Bald Husky]

Je ne sais pas.

Three years of French in high school and that phrase is the only one I remember.LOL

 

[Centerstream]

I just checked (May 25th). 3X3 basketball is an Olympic Sport. The next
Olympic Games is in Los Angeles in 2028. The USA participating in
these events is probably an attempt to get our Women's 3X3 team
some experience before the actual "BIG DANCE"!! As we noticed this
weekend there were many "national" teams in this Marseille competition
as well as City (e.g. "Madrid") and other regional teams. As Mayor
Ed Koch said, years ago: "You can't win it... if you're not in it". ("Ed"
was the major of New York City for those members of the Boneyard from other regions of the USA.").

Won't the Olympic 3X3 team be made up of WNBA players? Hasn't this been the case for most every sport ever since the IOC "allowed" professionals to participate?

 

[Zarathustra]

Won't the Olympic 3X3 team be made up of WNBA players? Hasn't this been the case for most every sport ever since the IOC "allowed" professionals to participate?

You are probably right in this assumption. But I, being a dreamer,
imagined Sarah Strong in the summer of 2028 after completing her
senior year at UCONN (a few NCs??) then being a (possible) candidate
for the USA 3X3 Olympic Team in Los Angeles!! Another 3X3 Gold for
Sarah??? She won GOLD in earlier FIBA 3X3 tournaments,, e.g. U18,
U16.

 

[Centerstream]

You are probably right in this assumption. But I, being a dreamer,
imagined Sarah Strong in the summer of 2028 after completing her
senior year at UCONN (a few NCs??) then being a (possible) candidate
for the USA 3X3 Olympic Team in Los Angeles!! Another 3X3 Gold for
Sarah??? She won GOLD in earlier FIBA 3X3 tournaments,, e.g. U18,
U16.

Or Sarah will be in the WNBA by the time that the Olympics start, so...
(Don't the Olympics start in July???)

 

[Zarathustra]

Won't the Olympic 3X3 team be made up of WNBA players? Hasn't this been the case for most every sport ever since the IOC "allowed" professionals to participate?

In 2024, at Paris, The USA 3X3 Bronze winning team was composed of:
Cierra Burdick (also on the recent Marseille team), Dearica Hamby (WNBA),
Rhyne Howard (WNBA), and Hailey Van Lith (TCU). Like at Marseille,
the USA struggled, losing their first 3 games. They then righted the
ship, winning their final 6 games and defeated Canada for the Bronze
Medal 16-13. With the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028, this underscores
the need to get a deep pool of USA players ready to content for that
future Olympic Squad.

 

[Zarathustra]

It would seem that Spain was heads and above all the others. I would be curious to learn about the makeup and background of that team, players, etc. especially since, if as stated, this 3x3 program will be in the upcoming Olympics.

FYI: (excuse any misspelling of names!)
1. Vega Gimeno Martinez was the MVP of the tournament. She
was a Silver Medalist at the 3X3 Women's Paris Olympics.
Ms. Martinez is 186 cm = 6'1". She plays with Basket
Zaragoza in Spain. She won the Women's 3X3 "European Cup"
in 2021 and was a runner up in 2019 and 2023. She played
collegiate ball at Robert Morris U, in Pittsburgh from 2007 to
2010. She is a "small forward", and she was born on January 8,
1991 = 34 years old.
2. Gracia Alonso De Armino, 32 years old, height 180 cm = 5'9".
3. Juana Camilion, 26 years old, Height 180 cm = 5'9"
4. Sandra Ygueravide, 40 years old, height 172 cm = 5' 6".
So, the Spanish team was SHORTER than the USA!!
Burdick 6'2", Sarah 6' 2", S. Williams 5'11", and M. Williams
(I think) 6'0".
At the Paris Olympics Germany took GOLD beating Spain
(Silver), and the USA beat Canada 16 -13 for the Bronze. The USA
team was Cierra Burdick, Dearica Hamby, Rhyne Howard, and
Hailey van Lith.

 

[MSGRET]

BE ALL YOU CAN BE, SARAH. ENJOY IT ALL!!!!!

When did Sarah join the Army?

 

[ERWUC65]

FYI: (excuse any misspelling of names!)
1. Vega Gimeno Martinez was the MVP of the tournament. She
was a Silver Medalist at the 3X3 Women's Paris Olympics.
Ms. Martinez is 186 cm = 6'1". She plays with Basket
Zaragoza in Spain. She won the Women's 3X3 "European Cup"
in 2021 and was a runner up in 2019 and 2023. She played
collegiate ball at Robert Morris U, in Pittsburgh from 2007 to
2010. She is a "small forward", and she was born on January 8,
1991 = 34 years old.
2. Gracia Alonso De Armino, 32 years old, height 180 cm = 5'9".
3. Juana Camilion, 26 years old, Height 180 cm = 5'9"
4. Sandra Ygueravide, 40 years old, height 172 cm = 5' 6".
So, the Spanish team was SHORTER than the USA!!
Burdick 6'2", Sarah 6' 2", S. Williams 5'11", and M. Williams
(I think) 6'0".
At the Paris Olympics Germany took GOLD beating Spain
(Silver), and the USA beat Canada 16 -13 for the Bronze. The USA
team was Cierra Burdick, Dearica Hamby, Rhyne Howard, and
Hailey van Lith.

Thank you for all that, very informative, also begs the question of how does the US select their team, seems like just an afterthought?

 

[Zarathustra]

Thank you for all that, very informative, also begs the question of how does the US select their team, seems like just an afterthought?

The "regular" USA squads are selected (to be best of my knowledge) in
line with the just finished U16 Women's American Women's Team: 52
players invited to Colorado training facility, a " cut " down " to 22
"Finalists" and then a chosen12. For 3x3 competition I would guess that
it is different, but similar? In the past the Girls 3x3 were chosen by
a competition between a number of teams (four players = one team). The "WOMEN's Series" goes on all year, all over the world and for each competition site it is a different "team". So a particular team may be "selected" based
on the individual players experience and skill set for a particular tournament/
championship. One interesting fact is the "seeding" for these
tournaments. The seeding is based on the "country's/team's" record
over an extended period. Thus, the USA's lowish "seeding" for the
Marseille competition. Cierra Burdick has been playing international
3X3 competition for quite a long time.
On another front I was wrong on some of my "facts" about the
FIBA "official" ball. There are four approved balls: one by VEGA (Chinese
from Zhangzhou, China); one from Molten (Japanese, from Hiroshima); and
one each from Wilson and Spaulding. On the FIBA website these balls have
the "specifications" of "Size "6", Intermediate, 28.5 " (they said Diameter, but
they must mean Circumference?!, see below), and the material
is described as "composite leather" for Wilson, and Synthetic Leather for Spaulding. They describe the balls has having the "same weight" as the
size 7 ball. (men's, I assume). The NCAA, women's ball, is a "size 6" with a circumference "between 28.5 to 29" and a weight between 18 -20 oz. The ball "when dropped from 6 feet will bounce between 51 - 56 inches. So, if I
understand this correctly, the FIBA balls are the same "size", i.e. a size"6". I am
still a little confused about the weight as it was posted as "Same weight as
a Size 7". I also looked up the WNBA official ball: 16 oz, 28.5 " (so there
is a clear similarity of these balls). My mistake was that I believe that
I once heard a reference to different ball sizes/"grip"/weight etc. but that was at
a FIBA 'dunking' contest for MEN. I seemed to have generalized too much.
Any better information on such things would be appreciated for further
clarification.
P.S. There is an Official Surface for all FIBA 3X3 competition and
even an official "canopy system" for the outdoor venue (rain and sun
variables). So, there is a guaranteed uniformity among all international
sites. All teams have to contend with the same wind... and many
announcers have made comments about the wind affecting the
players outside shooting accuracy. Too much info? I must
have too, too much time on my retired hands!! Z

 

[ERWUC65]

The "regular" USA squads are selected (to be best of my knowledge) in
line with the just finished U16 Women's American Women's Team: 52
players invited to Colorado training facility, a " cut " down " to 22
"Finalists" and then a chosen12. For 3x3 competition I would guess that
it is different, but similar? In the past the Girls 3x3 were chosen by
a competition between a number of teams (four players = one team). The "WOMEN's Series" goes on all year, all over the world and for each competition site it is a different "team". So a particular team may be "selected" based
on the individual players experience and skill set for a particular tournament/
championship. One interesting fact is the "seeding" for these
tournaments. The seeding is based on the "country's/team's" record
over an extended period. Thus, the USA's lowish "seeding" for the
Marseille competition. Cierra Burdick has been playing international
3X3 competition for quite a long time.
On another front I was wrong on some of my "facts" about the
FIBA "official" ball. There are four approved balls: one by VEGA (Chinese
from Zhangzhou, China); one from Molten (Japanese, from Hiroshima); and
one each from Wilson and Spaulding. On the FIBA website these balls have
the "specifications" of "Size "6", Intermediate, 28.5 " (they said Diameter, but
they must mean Circumference?!, see below), and the material
is described as "composite leather" for Wilson, and Synthetic Leather for Spaulding. They describe the balls has having the "same weight" as the
size 7 ball. (men's, I assume). The NCAA, women's ball, is a "size 6" with a circumference "between 28.5 to 29" and a weight between 18 -20 oz. The ball "when dropped from 6 feet will bounce between 51 - 56 inches. So, if I
understand this correctly, the FIBA balls are the same "size", i.e. a size"6". I am
still a little confused about the weight as it was posted as "Same weight as
a Size 7". I also looked up the WNBA official ball: 16 oz, 28.5 " (so there
is a clear similarity of these balls). My mistake was that I believe that
I once heard a reference to different ball sizes/"grip"/weight etc. but that was at
a FIBA 'dunking' contest for MEN. I seemed to have generalized too much.
Any better information on such things would be appreciated for further
clarification.
P.S. There is an Official Surface for all FIBA 3X3 competition and
even an official "canopy system" for the outdoor venue (rain and sun
variables). So, there is a guaranteed uniformity among all international
sites. All teams have to contend with the same wind... and many
announcers have made comments about the wind affecting the
players outside shooting accuracy. Too much info? I must
have too, too much time on my retired hands!! Z

Please continue... My interest in the 3x3 is probably recent and generated by the lull in regular NCAA activity in the summer. I would expect though that with the upcoming Olympic venues in the US that your explanations will prove valuable in our understanding of (1) why this is now an Olympic sport, and (2) how, with all the variables across countries, can the governing body determine rules and regulations to provide equivalence for all? Thanks again.

 

[WiseWillie]

Tough one but a great learning experience.

"Learning experience"? Maybe for some pick up, playground basketball and 3x3 play but certainly not any learning when it comes to 5 on 5 Div I or WNBA. There is little in 3x3 that transfers over to the way Geno wants his players to play.

 

[Zarathustra]

Please continue... My interest in the 3x3 is probably recent and generated by the lull in regular NCAA activity in the summer. I would expect though that with the upcoming Olympic venues in the US that your explanations will prove valuable in our understanding of (1) why this is now an Olympic sport, and (2) how, with all the variables across countries, can the governing body determine rules and regulations to provide equivalence for all? Thanks again.

You are most welcome! My hunch about the "why" of 3X3 being an
Olympic Sport is that "FIBA" has Organized Worldwide competition
in basketball for YEARS! FIBA stands for "Federation Internationale de
Basketball". It was organized on June 18, 1932. FIBA has divided the
international basketball world into 5 zones with 212 National Federations being members. To answer #2: FIBA is the WORLD governing body for the sport
of Basketball! They organized the events and set the rules! For example, if
you look at the FIBA basketball "refs" they are men and women from
essentially every country in the world! N.B. Mongolia is a very active
member in the 3X3 international community.! For more information
check out FIBA by googling and reading the Wikipedia site.
On the 5X5 side of things: The USA women's U16 team which was just selected will be competing in the FIBA AMERICAS Championship in Irapuato, Mexico from June 16 to June 22,2025.
UCONN POI who are on that team: Ivanna Wilson Manyacka, H.S.
class of 2027. She is 6'2" from the state of Maryland, and Oliva Jones,
H.S. class of 2026. Olivia is 5'11" and she plays for Long Island Lutheran
H.S. By the way H.C. Kim Mulkey of LSU has already set her sights on the "Big Girl" on this USA team: Caroline Bradley, the 6'5" center (age 16) from Louisiana. Ms.
Bradley is the current Gatorade POY for Louisiana.

 

[ERWUC65]

You are most welcome! My hunch about the "why" of 3X3 being an
Olympic Sport is that "FIBA" has Organized Worldwide competition
in basketball for YEARS! FIBA stands for "Federation Internationale de
Basketball". It was organized on June 18, 1932. FIBA has divided the
international basketball world into 5 zones with 212 National Federations being members. To answer #2: FIBA is the WORLD governing body for the sport
of Basketball! They organized the events and set the rules! For example, if
you look at the FIBA basketball "refs" they are men and women from
essentially every country in the world! N.B. Mongolia is a very active
member in the 3X3 international community.! For more information
check out FIBA by googling and reading the Wikipedia site.
On the 5X5 side of things: The USA women's U16 team which was just selected will be competing in the FIBA AMERICAS Championship in Irapuato, Mexico from June 16 to June 22,2025.
UCONN POI who are on that team: Ivanna Wilson Manyacka, H.S.
class of 2027. She is 6'2" from the state of Maryland, and Oliva Jones,
H.S. class of 2026. Olivia is 5'11" and she plays for Long Island Lutheran
H.S. By the way H.C. Kim Mulkey of LSU has already set her sights on the "Big Girl" on this USA team: Caroline Bradley, the 6'5" center (age 16) from Louisiana. Ms.
Bradley is the current Gatorade POY for Louisiana.

I'm embarrassed to say your explanations and details just generate more questions. I.E., is there a distinction between amateur and professional and is there an age range in play and one more, is 5x5 just as popular, or more, than 3x3 and do we go to FIBA to learn the rules of each? I am quite familiar with FIFA rules and regs as being an American soccer coach for several years back in the day, although we have historically been the ugly duckling in that venue, mostly not complying with international structure.

 

[Zarathustra]

Sarah will be playing in the FIBA 3X3 Women's Series Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
championship on June 18 and June 19. This will be a prelude to the
Fiba (bigger) 3x3 Women's championship, also in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia on
June 23 -25. In the second competition the USA will be in POOL B and
play Czechia at 1:40 AM ET and then the Netherlands at 4:20 AM ET.
on June 25 they play Japan at 11:50 PM and the final POOL game is
against Chile at 2 AM ? June 26.
Her teammates will be Morgan Maly (Creighton U) and
Mikaylah Williams (LSU) and Sahara Williams ( U of Oklahoma)
These games will be televised LIVE on YouTube.com/ FIBA 3X3
NICE to have two players from the BIG EAST!! GO SARAH!, go MORGAN!

 

[EricLA]

Morgan was a really solid player for Creighton. Never really thought she'd make it in the W, but like Burdick, and I'm sure others, 3x3 is a different animal and can be a great outlet for players not quite good enough to excel in the W.

For Sarah, great experience. I assume it's after the summer session? Perfect timing for her if she doesn't mind traveling and not going "home". I will admit I know very little about Mongolia, but what a great opportunity for her not only from a hoops perspective, but also from a traveling and exploring the world perspective!

 

[Zarathustra]

Additional information on the first competition:
See also htts://Women's Series.FIBA.com/Ulaanbaatar
or OVERVIEW/ FIBA 3X3 Women's Series Ulaanbaatar Stop 3X3 2025
This is a 12-team field. USA is in POOL C. Our first game, June 18th,
is at 4:55 AM against AUSTRALIA! and the second game is
again on June 18th and it is against "AMGALAN U24".
This first tournament is similar to the one in Marseille, France earlier
this year. My hunch is that we are in this tournament to
adjust to the time difference and get the team chemistry and
timing down (prior to the June 23 - 25 tournament). It was my opinion
that our "issues" in Marseille included the multiple adjustments that are needed
to competitively compete with the different style of play and rules, etc. etc.
Sarah, Mikaylah and Sahara have previously played together. Morgan Maly is the new member on the team. There is no schedule yet for the third game. The Opponent and time will be determined by the results of the first day POOL
results.
The first tournament is the FIBA 3X3 "PRO CIRCUIT" and includes
national team and non-national team. I just check the 12 teams for this
first tournament. USA is "seeded" #6. The Fiba Page still has the
USA team with the same roster as in Marseille: Sarah, Burdick, M. Williams,
and Sahara Williams. I suspect Morgan Maly will be replacing Burdick?
Canada is the #1 seed, with Ulaanbaatar "Amazons MGL" #2 , Austria
#3, Germany #4, and Singapore #5 then the USA. Seeded # 12 is
Ukraine with Kateryne "KATE" Koval, formerly at NOTRE DAME. Kate has
transferred to LSU for next season. She has
already participated in 49 games with Ukraine over the years.

 

[donalddoowop]

I was hoping she was done until the start of the official UConn practice. Always concerned about a season ending injury.

 

[Urshurak]

When did Sarah join the Army?

Agree. Basketball isn't just her job, it's an adventure. Wait, that's Navy.

She is an elite basketball players for sure. One of the few, the proud, the...wait, thats Marines.

Anone know what Coastguard is?

 

[oldude]

Agree. Basketball isn't just her job, it's an adventure. Wait, that's Navy.

She is an elite basketball players for sure. One of the few, the proud, the...wait, thats Marines.

Anone know what Coastguard is?

Semper Paratus - Always ready

 

[Zarathustra]

Semper Paratus - Always ready

I once heard that the Coast Guard's motto was: "You have to
go out... but you don't have to come back!" From the old C.G.
lifeboat stations in the 19th century.

 

[Zarathustra]

FYI: a review of the FIBA 'seedings" for the First Tournament
"PRO SERIES" (June 18 - 19th). I have only included the teams that
are schedule to also play in the SECOND TOURNAMENT "FIBA
3X3 Women's World Cup" (June 23 -29th). The second list will be
the FIBA "seedings" of the World Cup team. I find this interesting
because how the USA does in the First Tournament will give an
indication of their probability of success in the "World Cup"
June 18 - 19th seedings: 1. Canada 3. Australia 4. Germany
6. USA 8. Japan 9. Mongolia 10. Austria 12. Ukraine. Take away:
8 out of the 12 teams will be repeaters for the second tournament and
"in theory" our competition is Canada, Australia and Germany.
June 23 - 29th seedings: Note the TOP 4 seeded teams for the
tournament are divided between the 4 Pools. The second four
seeded teams are then divided again into same four pools (Pool A - D) etc.
Thus: the USA (seeded #6) is in POOL B matched up against the #1 seeded
Netherlands, # 10 seeded Czechia, #15 seeded Japan, and #17th seeded
Chile. The other #1 seeds are China, France, and Spain. The other number TWO
seeds are Germany, Canada, and Poland.
If you are handicapping the tournaments based on the results of
the Marseille "Pro Series", here are the results from Marseille:
The winner was SPAIN, second place was Czechia, fourth place
was Poland, SIXTH PLACE was the USA (Sarah, C. Burdick, M. Williams,
and Sahara Williams), 10th place was Australia, and 11th was Netherlands.
I apologize if anyone finds this boring.... I find it fascinating to
understand at the outset that the USA team is not the "favorite" in
either one of these tournaments (although I realize that the FIBA
seeding system is somewhat tortuous!). I am interested in the
possible BONEYARD interest to these Middle of the Night games.
Of course, there will be YouTube video replays at more sane
hour for sleepy UCONN fans. GO SARAH!! Beat Australia, Beat
Amgalan U24!

 

[Zarathustra]

First game opponent 4:55 AM, Wednesday, a12-hour time differential.
Australia: Alex Wilson age 31, 180 cm = 5' 11", a previous MVP at an earlier tournament site. Annel Maley age 26, 186 cm= 6'1'". She was briefly with LA SPARKS in training camp this spring. Miela Sowah, age 25, 177 cm = 5'10"; played at DUKE U., and Marena Whittle age 31, 180 cm = 5'11. You'll know her by the tattoos on her
right arm. USA heights per FIBA: Sahara Williams, 182 cm= 6'0", Mikaylah
Williams, 183 cm = 6'0", Sarah Strong 190 cm = 6'3" (per FIBA! 190 cm translates
to 74.8031 inches which is, of course, just shy of 6'3") and either
Cierra Burdick, 31 years old, 187 cm = 6'2"; or Morgan Maly, 6'1". Morgan was
briefly on the Connecticut Sun's Spring Training roster. Some confusion between
the current FIBA web site and the USA team "announcement" for the Second
tournament which has Morgan Maly, not C. Burdick.
The Second Game is about two hours later at 6:45 AM. I believe that this will either be "Amgalan U24" a "Pro" team from Mongolia or a Team called
the Ulaanbaatar "Amazons". The "Amazons", I believe, are the Mongolian National team. The "Amazons" may have a "national Hero" on this squad so there will be more than a little HOME COURT crowd support! I have not checked the roster
as of yet.

 

[Zarathustra]

Follow-up: The USA's and Sarah's second game (tomorrow)
is against the "PRO" team "Amagalan U24". The heights of that
roster are: 5'6", 5' 10", 5' 7", and 5'7". The "National Hero" lady
is Khulan Onobaatar, 25 years old, 5' 11". She is on the
Ulaanbaatar "Amazons" team.

 

[Zarathustra]

GOOD MORNING, Next up: USA vs Australia
So far. some upsets: Ukraine upsets Germany 15 - 13
Australia over Angalan U24 21 -6
Austria upsets Ulaanbaatar 17 - 11
Canada over Mongolia 21 - 6 and
finally, Germany in a MUST win over Singapore 21 - 17
Back in about 15 -20 minutes
******** VICTORY! USA 21 Australia 18 *************
Morgan Maly 8 points, Sarah Strong 4 points, Mikaylah Williams 3 points
and Sahara Williams 6 points.
USA falls behind early, comes back to tie at 11 - 11 and 13 - 13.
Australia with multiple two pointers to keep it tight. This was
a Physical, fast paced game. Multiple players winded and
missing some defensive assignments. This could have gone
either way. A number of missed offensive opportunities by
the USA left a BIG OPENING for an Australian comeback. On
a positive point for Sarah... she had at least two blocks.
Morgan Maly, Creighton, with some Critical late game free throws.
The announcer reported that this was the AUSTRALIAN OLYMPIC
NATIONAL TEAM!
Back for the USA vs Amagalan U24 game at 6:45 AM.