 | |
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host country |  Singapore |
| City | Singapore |
| Dates | 21–24 September |
| Teams | 6 |
| Venue | 1 |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  Sesi Franca(1st title) |
| Runners-up |  Telekom Baskets Bonn |
| Third place |  Zhejiang Golden Bulls |
| Fourth place |  Al Ahly |
| Tournament statistics | |
| MVP | David Jackson (Franca) |
| Topscorer | Lucas Dias (Franca, 18.0points per game) |
| Official website | |
| Official website | |
2024 → | |
The2023 FIBA Intercontinental Cup was the 33rd edition of theFIBA Intercontinental Cup. The tournament was hosted in theSingapore Indoor Stadium inSingapore. It was the first time Singapore hosted the tournament, as well as the first time the tournament is being held inAsia.[1]
It was the second Intercontinental Cup in the same calendar year, as the tournament cycle was changed to September to better adapt to the club's schedules. It was also the first tournament under an expanded format with six teams, with two teams from Asia being added.
Franca won its first title after beatingTelekom Baskets Bonn in the final. Franca'sLucas Dias scored a fadeaway jumper in the post to beat the buzzer which gave them the win;David Jackson was namedMVP.[2]
Contrary to the previous seasons, theNBA G League Ignite were pre-selected as representatives for theNBA G League and were the first known team to participate. Two representative from Asia (a pre-selectedChinese Basketball Association club and another) were added as FIBA announced that the competition would expand from four to six teams.[1]
On 19 June 2023, FIBA announced theZhejiang Golden Bulls to be the CBA representative, and also announced they invitedAl Manama as the sixth and final team, following Manama's win of the2022–23 West Asia Super League.[3]
| Team | Qualification | Qualified date | Participations (bold indicates winners) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 NBA G League Ignite | Pre-selected as representative of theNBA G League[a] | 3 March 2023 | Debut | [1] |
| Zhejiang Golden Bulls | Pre-selected as representative of theCBA[b] | 19 June 2023 | Debut | [3] |
| Al Ahly | Winners of the2023 BAL season | 27 May 2023 | Debut | [4] |
| Sesi Franca | Winners of the2022–23 BCL Americas | 15 April 2023 | 5 (1975,1976,1977,1980,1981) | [5] |
| Telekom Baskets Bonn | Winners of the2022–23 Basketball Champions League | 14 May 2023 | Debut | [6] |
 Al Manama | Winners of the2022–23 West Asia Super League | 19 June 2023[c] | Debut | [3] |
The 2023 season was the first of three tournaments to be held inSingapore in theSingapore Indoor Stadium, under an agreement betweenFIBA andSport Singapore, an organisation controlled by the country's government. Opened in 1989, the indoor arena can host 12,000 people for sporting events and is located in theSingapore Sports Hub.
The draw was held on 20 June 2023 at theArtScience Museum in Singapore, and was attended byVlade Divac,Yi Jianlian andIan Mahinmi.[3]
Al Ahly defeated theNBA G League Ignite 82–76 to become the first African team to win a game in Intercontinental Cup history.[7] The following day, Al Ahly was easily defeated by Brazilian sideFranca, 90–70. Franca's 41-year oldDavid Jackson led the team with 22 points,Lucas Dias andMárcio Santos both added 21 points.[8] On the last day, Sesi Franca beat the NBA G League Ignite 98–89 to clinch the first place in Group A and to qualify for the final.[9]
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sesi Franca | 2 | 2 | 0 | 188 | 159 | +29 | 4 | Advance tofinal |
| 2 | Al Ahly | 2 | 1 | 1 | 152 | 166 | −14 | 3 | Qualification tothird place game |
| 3 | NBA G League Ignite | 2 | 0 | 2 | 165 | 180 | −15 | 2 | Qualification tofifth place game |
21 September 2023 19:00 |
| NBA G League Ignite | 76–82 | Al Ahly |
| Scoring by quarter:21–20, 22–25, 16–17, 17–20 | ||
| Pts:Smith 18 Rebs:Almansa 8 Asts:Johnson 6 | Pts:Amin 15 Rebs:Kejo 13 Asts:Cole 9 | |
Singapore Indoor Stadium,Singapore Referees: Yohan Rosso (FRA), Scott Beker (AUS), Viola Györgyi (ROU) |
22 September 2023 15:00 |
| Sesi Franca | 90–70 | Al Ahly |
| Scoring by quarter:26–17,16–15,26–15, 22–23 | ||
| Pts:Dias,Jackson 22 Rebs:Márcio 9 Asts:Georginho 9 | Pts:Cole 17 Rebs:Amin 9 Asts: Amin 5 | |
Singapore Indoor Stadium,Singapore Referees: Omar Bermúdez (MEX), Amy Bonner (USA), Péter Praksch (HUN) |
23 September 2023 15:00 |
| NBA G League Ignite | 89–98 | Sesi Franca |
| Scoring by quarter: 23–25, 27–29,23–22, 16–22 | ||
| Pts:Jenkins 15 Rebs:Almansa 12 Asts: Jenkins 6 | Pts:Georginho,Luz 19 Rebs:Ferreira 9 Asts:Borges,Jackson 5 | |
Singapore Indoor Stadium,Singapore Referees: Antonio Conde (ESP), Yevgeniy Mikheyev (KAZ), Péter Praksch (HUN) |
The first game of the tournament was betweenTelekom Baskets Bonn andAl Manama, in which Bonn comfortably defeated Manama 105–50 behind 28 points fromSam Griesel.[7] On the second day, theZhejiang Golden Bulls made their debut with a convincing 95–78 victory over Manama, relegating them to the fifth place game.[8] Bonn blew out the Golden Bulls on the third gameday to qualify for the final.[9]
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Telekom Baskets Bonn | 2 | 2 | 0 | 216 | 100 | +116 | 4 | Advance tofinal |
| 2 | Zhejiang Golden Bulls | 2 | 1 | 1 | 145 | 189 | −44 | 3 | Qualification tothird place game |
| 3 | Al Manama | 2 | 0 | 2 | 128 | 200 | −72 | 2 | Qualification tofifth place game |
21 September 2023 15:00 |
| Telekom Baskets Bonn | 105–50 | Al Manama |
| Scoring by quarter:26–16,24–6,34–11,21–17 | ||
| Pts:Griesel 28 Rebs: Griesel 10 Asts:Frey 6 | Pts:Pointer 14 Rebs:Thibodeaux 5 Asts: Thibodeaux 6 | |
Singapore Indoor Stadium,Singapore Referees: Antonio Conde (ESP), Amy Bonner (USA), Wael Mostafa (EGY) |
22 September 2023 19:00 |
| Zhejiang Golden Bulls | 95–78 | Al Manama |
| Scoring by quarter:23–15,23–22,32–21, 17–20 | ||
| Pts:Perry 17 Rebs: Perry 6 Asts:Yibo 6 | Pts:Pointer 19 Rebs:Williams 10 Asts:Haji, Pointer 4 | |
Singapore Indoor Stadium,Singapore Referees: Yohan Rosso (FRA), Scott Beker (AUS), Yevgeniy Mikheyev (KAZ) |
23 September 2023 19:00 |
| Zhejiang Golden Bulls | 50–111 | Telekom Baskets Bonn |
| Scoring by quarter: 16–30, 11–33, 14–23, 9–25 | ||
| Pts:Perry 10 Rebs: Perry 9 Asts:three players 2 | Pts:Griesel 16 Rebs:Turudic 9 Asts:Frey 9 | |
Singapore Indoor Stadium,Singapore Referees: Yohan Rosso (FRA), Omar Bermúdez (MEX), Viola Györgyi (ROM) |
TheNBA G League Ignite captured the fifth place following their 80–60 win overAl Manama. Heading into the last three minutes, it was a close-contested game as the score was 63–60 with 3:33 remaining. From that point, the Ignite'sBabacar Sané scored five straight points, followed by two three-pointers and aRon Holland dunk that gave the Ignite a 17–0 run in the final three minutes. Sané had a double-double of 22 points and 11 rebounds, Ron Holland finished with 21 points and 11 rebounds.[10]
24 September 2023 12:00 |
| NBA G League Ignite | 80–60 | Al Manama |
| Scoring by quarter:17–10, 19–20,19–17,25–13 | ||
| Pts:Sané 22 Rebs:Holland, Sané 11 Asts:Almansa 6 | Pts:Pointer 20 Rebs: Pointer 13 Asts:Rashed 5 | |
Singapore Indoor Stadium,Singapore Referees: Yohan Rosso (FRA), Viola Györgyi (ROU), Wael Mostafa (EGY) |
In the first half,Al Ahly had a lead as big as 11 points, however theZhejiang Golden Bulls took control in the second half.Reggie Perry had a double-double of 23 points and 12 rebounds.Wu Qian contributed 20 points and 5 assists. The Golden Bulls became the first Chinese team to reach the podium in the Intercontinental Cup. Al Ahly finished fourth, which was the third time in a row the African representative finished in this position.[11]
24 September 2023 15:00 |
| Al Ahly | 74–81 | Zhejiang Golden Bulls |
| Scoring by quarter:22–12, 16–25, 15–22, 21–22 | ||
| Pts:Amin,Oraby 14 Rebs:Fakuade, Oraby 11 Asts: Amin 4 | Pts:Perry 23 Rebs: Perry 12 Asts:Gulley 7 | |
Singapore Indoor Stadium,Singapore Referees: Omar Bermúdez (MEX), Yevgeniy Mikheyev (KAZ), Péter Praksch (HUN) |
In a tightly contested game, Telekom Baskets Bonn went into the final two minutes with the advantage, coming off a three-pointer by Christian Sengfelder.Glynn Watson Jr. made a floater to put Bonn up 69–68 with 38 seconds left in the game. Franca missed their last shot and did not foul with 26 seconds left in the game. After a shot clock violation, Franca coachHelinho called a time-out as the Brazilians prepared to inbound the ball in front court. Franca inbounded the ballLucas Dias who scored a fadeaway jumper in the post to beat the buzzer.[2] Finishing with a score of 70–69, it was the second final to finish by a single point margin, following the first leg of2015 betweenBauru andReal Madrid. Franca became the third Brazilian team to win the Intercontintenal Cup, afterSírio andFlamengo.[2]David Jackson, at age 41, was named theFIBA Intercontinental Cup MVP following his 12 points and 8 assists in the final.[2]
24 September 2023 19:00 |
| Sesi Franca | 70–69 | Telekom Baskets Bonn |
| Scoring by quarter:18–13, 16–21,24–16, 12–19 | ||
| Pts:Márcio 15 Rebs: Márcio 8 Asts:Jackson 8 | Pts:Watson Jr. 16 Rebs:Griesel,Kirkwood 5 Asts: Watson Jr. 5 | |
Singapore Indoor Stadium,Singapore Attendance: 8,000[12] Referees: Antonio Conde (ESP), Amy Bonner (USA), Scott Beker (AUS) |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Sesi Franca | 3 | 3 | 0 | 258 | 228 | +30 | 6 |
 | Telekom Baskets Bonn | 3 | 2 | 1 | 285 | 170 | +115 | 5 |
 | Zhejiang Golden Bulls | 3 | 2 | 1 | 226 | 263 | −37 | 5 |
| 4 | Al Ahly | 3 | 1 | 2 | 226 | 247 | −21 | 4 |
| 5 | NBA G League Ignite | 3 | 1 | 2 | 245 | 240 | +5 | 4 |
| 6 | Al Manama | 3 | 0 | 3 | 188 | 280 | −92 | 3 |
The following players were the individual leaders in the 2023 tournament.[13]
| Category | Player | Team(s) | Statistic |
|---|---|---|---|
| Efficiency per game | David Jackson | Franca | 23.0 |
| Points per game | Lucas Dias | Franca | 18.0 |
| Rebounds per game | Omar Oraby | Al Ahly | 9.7 |
| Assists per game | Georginho | Franca | 5.8 |
| Steals per game | Glynn Watson Jr. | Telekom Baskets Bonn | 2.7 |
| Blocks per game | Sir'Dominic Pointer | Al Manama | 2.7 |
| Minutes per game | Sir'Dominic Pointer | Al Manama | 33.7 |
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