LOS ANGELES (CNS) - Mid-City resident Kareem Maddox scored a game-high equaling six points and a team-high four rebounds as the U.S. defeated Brazil, 21-15, today to win the inaugural FIBA 3x3 AmeriCup basketball tournament in Miami.
The top-seeded U.S. trailed the third-seeded Brazilians 13-12 with four minutes, 21 seconds to play, then scored five unanswered points to take the lead for good. Maddox ended the game by making a jump shot with one minute, 49 seconds to play at Bayfront Park.
3x3 is played with a 12-second shot clock on a half court. Baskets inside the arc and free throws are worth one point and baskets made from outside the arc are worth two points.
The winner is the first team to score 21 points or the leading team at the end of the 10-minute game clock.
The 6-foot-8-inch former standout at Oak Park High School and Princeton University made all four of his 1-point shots and one of two 2-point shots.
``I did what I had to do,'' Maddox said. ``When you have these guys around you, you just have to show up and get a few rebounds and the rest will take care of itself.''
Canyon Barry also scored six points for the Americans, who won all five of their games in the 16-team tournament of teams representing nations in North America, Central America, South America and the Caribbean.
Barry is a son of Rick Barry, a member of the NBA's 50th and 75th anniversary teams.
Trey Bardsley, a 5-foot-10-inch guard, added five points for the U.S., and Charlie Brown Jr. added four.
Brown was selected as the tournament's MVP, averaging 8.2 points per game, second in the tournament.
Bardsley played for the Washington Generals, the Harlem Globetrotters' longtime foils, following a college career at Nebraska Wesleyan. Brown, a St. Joseph's alumnus, played 10 games for the Atlanta Hawks in the 2019-20 season and now plays for the Delaware Blue Coats of the NBA G League.
Maddox scored five points in the 22-17 quarterfinal victory over Jamaica and four in the 21-17 semifinal victory over Puerto Rico earlier Sunday.
The 31-year-old Maddox was a member for the U.S. team that won the FIBA 3x3 World Cup in 2019. He was also a member of the U.S. team which sought to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics, but lost to the Netherlands, 21-16, May 30 in the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament today in Graz, Austria.