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| Cagers battling it out at the AND1 3x3 Streetball Challenge 2015 at Penang Times Squar | . |
INDONESIAN Sudyanto, 21, purposely flew in from Medan to get a
‘competition feel’ at the AND1 3x3 Streetball Challenge 2015 at Penang
Times Square in George Town.
The college student did not return home empty-handed as he was one of the two winners of the side event ‘StarMetro Slam Dunk Competition’. He had spectators in awe with his powerful ‘flying dunk’ that saw him leaping for the basket from a distance.“Practice makes perfect. I practise a lot back home as I love basketball a lot.
“But there are not many competitions in my hometown. “When I heard of this competition, I knew I had to come here with my friends and our coach. “This is my first trip here and it is a worthwhile one. It was good
to be up against the challenge. The food here is outstanding too,” he
said.
Another winner of the ‘Slam Dunk Competition’ was 19-year-old college student Lee Zheng Qin. Zheng Qin won the heart of judge Wayne Ooi Chong Yew with his
performance of jumping over two of his two friends and putting the ball
into the basket.
“I can jump very high because I used to represent my school in high jump. I never thought I could win. I just gave it my best and it turned out to be one of the best,” he said.
Both Sudyanto and Zheng Qin received a Milo hamper, a Spalding basketball and a StarMetro trophy from The Star news editor (regional) K. Suthakar.
Suthakar also gave away prizes to the top three winners of the ‘In
Search of Streetballer Competition’ Chua Zheng Xuan, 16, Goh Tee En, 16,
and Ang Chuan Heng, nine. The trio will now battle it out with winners of other states at the
grand finals for the AND1 Street-baller title which comes with a RM3,000
contract along with various merchandise.
Catching the eyes of the public and judge was Chuan Heng, who was clearly not overawed by the event despite his young age.He put up a few tricks that made him outstanding among the other contestants. “I always view YouTube videos to learn the latest streetball tricks and skills,” he said.
A total of 190 teams took part in the streetball challenge that was
divided into four categories — Boys Under-12, Boys Under-15, Boys
Under-18 and Men Under-21. The top three winners in each category won World of Sports vouchers worth RM900, RM600 and RM300 respectively.
W.O.S. World Of Sports (M) Sdn Bhd international trade coordinator
Susan Cheong said the competition went smoothly and the weather had been
kind to the players. “It was not very hot and participants got to enjoy themselves with some good workout,” she said.
After the two legs at IOI Mall, Puchong, and Penang Times Square, the
next will be at Sutera Mall, Johor, in September and the grand final in
Kuala Lumpur in November. Malaysia Basketball Association sanctioned the competition. StarMetro is the official media partner of the tournament. Milo is the official beverage sponsor and Spalding is the official ball partner.
RESULTS
Under-12 Boys
1. KP 12 A
2. Pai Teik Team A
3. Banana ABC
Under-15 Boys
1. Team LKL
2. Monkiss
3. Strawberry
Under-18 Boys
1. Chung Ling
2. Justice League
3. Loser 1998
Under-21 Men
1. K.O.O
2. Ultimate
3. Baling
StarMetro Slam Dunk Competition: Sudyanto, Lee Zheng Qin.
Best Shooter Competition: Lim Wei Ming, Yew Wei Boon, Fong Zhan Way.
In Search of Streetballer Competition: Goh Tee En, Chua Zheng Xuan, Ang Chuen Seng.
News source: The Star Online
