Mother-daughter pair enjoy evening out at Fiba 3x3 Asia Cup after winning complimentary tickets

SINGAPORE – Jaynie Ong’s passion for basketball has grown over the past two years since she picked up the sport as a co-curricular activity.

Such is the Zhonghua Secondary School student’s enthusiasm that she has even converted her mother Jesslyn Lim into a fan.

It started with Lim attending her 15-year-old daughter’s school matches, and progressed to having conversations about the game and watching local tournaments, such as the Fiba 3x3 Asia Cup, in person.

The 45-year-old homemaker said: “I actually support her every time she plays for the school team. It’s become a mother-and-daughter activity for us.”

It was no surprise that they were delighted at winning a pair of tickets in a giveaway by the Singapore Sports Hub and The Straits Times for the final session of the Asia Cup at OCBC Square on March 30.

The other two contest winners were Lewis Lau and Lee Zheng Feng.

In addition to getting a pair of tickets, all three winners received a ball each autographed by the Australian women’s team.

It turned out to be a memorable outing for Jaynie, who was excited to meet the players from her favourite team.

She said: “It means a lot because I look forward to the Fiba Asia Cup every year, so I was hoping to get the tickets very badly.”

The shooting guard, who is also a fan of National Basketball Association (NBA) side Golden State Warriors, enjoyed watching the fast action and learning from the teams.

She said: “I like the intensity of the game and how different teams have different techniques, so I can have different experiences against different teams.

“I play basketball, so I love watching their techniques and it’s nice to see the same teams I’ve watched previously in action.”

For Lau, the Asia Cup in Singapore gives him a chance to showcase the different approaches and techniques of basketball to his overseas friends.

Previously, he brought friends from the Netherlands and Malaysia to the games and, at this event, he was with a Taiwanese buddy.

“Some of my friends watch basketball from different regions – the style and culture of basketball is quite different in Asia and Europe,” said Lau, who has travelled to watch international tournaments like the Fiba World Cup qualifiers and the William Jones Cup in Taiwan.

“Europe’s more physical, aggressive. In Asia, they focus more on teamwork – Japan and Korea focus on screens.”

The 33-year-old, who works in diplomatic missions, recalled catching the 3x3 bug at the *scape Youth Space during the 2010 Youth Olympic Games, where the format was featured.

While he follows both the 5v5 and 3x3 formats, it is the latter, which was introduced at the pandemic-hit Tokyo Olympics in 2021, that appeals to him as it levels the playing field and give more nations the opportunity to excel.

For example, the Mongolian men’s team are ranked 22nd in Asia, but top in the continent’s 3x3 rankings.

He said: “Because of the way the competition is structured, it allows empowerment of countries (with fewer resources for the 5v5 version).

“It also promotes gender equality – sometimes for women’s teams, they don’t have the full roster of 12 players but 3x3 requires just four players.”