Canada Women’s 3x3 opens pool play with a 22-14 win over Australia

Canada may be new to Olympic 3x3 play, but Michelle Plouffe, Katherine Plouffe, Paige Crozon, and Kacie Bosch are ready for the moment.

Canada’s 3x3 phenoms have been building momentum as a 3x3 team since 2019, self-funding themselves for the first year of competing. After not making it to Tokyo, the team regrouped and set their sights on Paris. They won Gold at the Women’s 3x3 AmeriCup in 2022, and then Silver at the World Cup that same year.

The team is ranked 5th in the World by FIBA, but Canadians hold the top three spots in individual rankings. Katherine Plouffe is 1st, Paige Crozon is 2nd, and Michelle Plouffe is 3rd.

Now in Paris at the Olympics for the first time as a 3x3 team, Canada is ready to make a run at the podium.

3x3: A fast-paced sprint of a game

3x3 basketball is played much differently than the traditional 5x5 game you may be used to. First, it’s played on a half court instead of a full court, and obviously only three players hit the floor at a time. Each team has one sub on the bench as well.

Games are 10 minutes long, but can end early if one team scores 21 points before the 10 minutes are up. The shot clock in this game is 12 seconds long, and inside shots are worth 1 point while shots beyond the arc are worth 2 points. You can also foul in 3x3, and team are allowed 6 fouls before they get into the bonus.

Free throws are still worth 1 point each, but in the bonus the shots work a little differently. If a player is fouled in the act of shooting, and the ball goes in the net, they get 1 point from the basket, shoot 1 basket for the foul, and shoot another for being in the bonus. Instead of getting and and-one, you can get an and-two!

Teams switch possession similar to traditional basketball but usually start a new possession at the top of the court. There are no intermissions in the 10 minute game, but teams can take 30 second long timeouts.

Okay, now that we know the basics, let’s go over Canada’s first game:

Canada gets off to a hot start at Olympics

Canada opened their pool play with a game against Australia, who beat them in a qualifying tournament just months ago. Maybe it was the energy of finally being at the Olympics, or the desire to seek revenge against a team that beat them, but Canada came out of the gates with a bang.

They got off to a 6-0 start, and Australia quickly racked up fouls on their end. It took Australia a long time to get going, and couldn’t get their shots to fall. In the end, Australia went 5-for-16 in 1 point shots, 1-for-6 in 2 point shots, and 7-for-10 in free throws.

While Canada began to struggle with foul trouble as the game went on, their lead came in handy down the stretch. While Australia depended on free throws to try and claw their way back into the game, Canada just kept hitting their shots and getting to the line themselves.

Canada was able to finish the game early, winning 22-14 with over a minute left in the clock. Katherine Plouffe led Canada with 10 points, 3 rebounds, Michelle Plouffe had 8 points, 5 rebounds, Crozon had 4 points, 4 rebounds, and Kacie Bosch had 2 rebounds.

Canada’s Pool Standings

Although not every team has played in their first pool game yet, Canada currently sits on top of the pool leaderboard. In 3x3, number of points counts as a factor in standing — almost like point differential in the 5x5 game.

Since Canada managed to reach 21+ points in their game, they lead with 1 win and 21 points. Germany also has a win, but sits in second place with 17 points.

Canada will play again tomorrow, July 31st, at 12pm vs China. It’s their only game tomorrow before playing 2 games on August 1st and 2 games on August 2nd.

Up Next for Canada Basketball:

Women’s 3x3: July 31st at 12pm vs China

Women’s 5x5: August 1st at 7:30am vs Australia

Men’s 5x5: August 2nd at 11:15am vs Spain