Antwerp were crowned champions of the inaugural FIBA 3×3 Lion City Challenger after defeating Shibuya 21-14 in the final at *SCAPE.

Over two days, more than 1,000 people attended the Lion City Challenger in the heart of Orchard Road, where some of the world’s leading 3×3 teams competed for the title and qualification spots for the FIBA 3×3 World Tour Lausanne Masters.

The inaugural Lion City Challenger came to a thrilling close with Antwerp, featuring Dennis Donkor, Jonas Foerts, Caspar Augustijnen and Vic Van Oosterwyck, taking on Shibuya in a high-intensity final in front of a lively crowd at *SCAPE.

The game began with both teams trading two-pointers, as Shibuya’s Kristaps Gluditis and Antwerp’s Donkor set the tone early. Shibuya kept pace through the opening exchanges and stayed within touching distance midway through the contest, but Antwerp’s shooting from range eventually proved decisive. The Belgian side hit seven two-pointers in the match, including Foerts’ game-winning shot, to seal the 21-14 victory.

Donkor, who sank four two-pointers in the final, said, “I think both teams were really tired. We knew it before the game, and it was going to be a battle of who deals with that the best. And I think they had two more games than us because they played the qualifying draw. And I think we dealt with the fatigue pretty well, so we came out on top.”

Antwerp produced a strong run through the knockout stages, defeating Princeton 21-16 in the quarter-finals and then overcoming Valencia 22-19 in the semi-finals.

Their victory in Singapore earned them a winner’s cheque of US$20,000 and a place in the Lausanne Masters, capping a memorable campaign at the inaugural Lion City Challenger. 

Donkor, the competition’s MVP, added, “I think, overall, we played really well. We had some better games and some not-so-good games. But I think we can be happy with the results, not just because we won, but also because of how we played. The weather was definitely a challenge, but I think we handled it well.”

The conclusion of the inaugural Lion City Challenger marks the start of a longer runway for 3×3 basketball in Singapore.

Under the expanded Sport Singapore-FIBA partnership, Singapore will host two FIBA 3×3 Challenger events and one FIBA 3×3 Women’s Series event each year from 2026 to 2031, creating more opportunities for local fans to watch world-class basketball and for Team Singapore athletes to compete against top-ranked players on home ground.

The momentum will continue in August, with the FIBA 3×3 Women’s Series taking place from 13 to 14 August, followed by the Singapore Challenger from 15 to 16 August. Both events will serve as important tests for Singapore’s national players as they build towards the Asian Games in September.