FIBA 3x3 Asia Cup 2019 kicks off in Changsha

CHANGSHA, CHINA, May 24 (Xinhua) -- The FIBA 3x3 Asia Cup 2019 kicked off in Changsha, the capital city of China's Hunan Province as the host suffered two losses in women's group stage on the opening night here on Friday.

About 100 players from 23 countries and regions of Asia and Oceania will compete fiercely in a total of 40 games. The tournament will be held here for three consecutive years starting from 2019. Changsha is also the host city of FIBA Asia Championships 2015 where China men's basketball team won the title and acquired the berth of the 2016 Olympic Games.

The players marched onto the court, held high the flags of their associations in the opening ceremony on Friday night followed by two games of the hosts' women's team, who ranked second in Asia Cup 2018, against the 2018 gold medalist New Zealand and bronze medalist Australia.

The game between China and New Zealand was quite close as two teams tied 14-14 before the overtime, but two shots from Antonia Edmondson ended the game 16-15 in "sudden death" manner.

Australia's Rebecca Cole storming four consecutive shots in the game, establishing 12-7 lead for the guests. Though Dilana Dilishati scored several points in the paint, the Australians still managed to win 16-14.

"We lost control in some details of the game, the two teams played in different styles. We had trouble in offence in the first game then made mistakes in defense in the next one," said Wu Di of team China. "I think we learned lessons from the games tonight."

Finished fifth in last year's tournament, China's men's team will face Qatar and New Zealand in the group stage on Saturday night.