Zagar represents Canada at FIBA 3x3 World Tour Challenger

London, ON - Representing your country on the international stage is an exhilarating experience that very few athletes will ever get to enjoy.
For Matteo Zagar of the Mustangs Men's Basketball team, that dream became a reality when he competed for Canada in the FIBA 3x3 World Tour Challenger event in Brasilia, Brazil.
 
Zagar's journey to Brazil began with a victory in the FIBA 3x3 U23 Nationals, representing Team Ontario.


 
Along with the prize money, the team also secured a spot in the 3x3 qualifier event in Brazil.
 
"We were competing against professional 3x3 teams from across the world," said Zagar. "We were there as a qualifying team to try and make it into the true draw of the tournament. Unfortunately, we did not."
 
Zagar and his team secured a win against Brooklyn but fell short against the Sao Paulo professional 3x3 team, representing Brazil on the international stage.


 
"It was very fun competing against them," said Zagar. "They ended up beating some of the highest-ranked 3x3 teams in the world."
 
The tournament in Brazil was about more than just the results for Zagar.
 
"It was incredible competing in Brazil," said Zagar. "Just being there wearing Canada basketball gear, representing our country, seeing professionals from all over the world, and being in that atmosphere with all the Brazilian locals who came to watch.


 
"They loved their basketball, and the atmosphere was amazing and unlike anything I've ever experienced playing basketball before."
 
For Zagar, it was more than just basketball; it was about the culture, the people, and the shared passion for the sport.
 
"The age difference was kind of wild also, but despite the results, we were happy with the effort we put in and representing Canada," Zagar said.

The 3x3 format is a different style of basketball, and for Zagar, it was a learning experience.
 
"3x3 basketball is completely new to me and it's completely different from 5x5 basketball," said Zagar. "Things that I think I'm great at, like moving without the ball, rebounding, cutting, all that stuff that you've got to constantly be moving and playing defense and making reads, translated very well for me to 3x3."


 
But the competition in Brazil was a different beast. "When we got to Brazil, it was a whole different story playing against fully grown men and professionals in the sport as well," said Zagar.
 
"It was fun to play against that, do the best we could, and experience this different style of competition."
 
Zagar's experience in Brazil and winning the FIBA 3x3 U23 Nationals has fueled his motivation and drive coming into the season with the Mustangs.
 
"I've never felt such satisfaction from winning before," said Zagar. "So that feeling of success and hard work that I got from that, really, I can take that and hopefully try and motivate the guys into how great winning really feels if we can make it all the way."
 
Zagar is determined to inspire his teammates and push them towards achieving their goals.
 
"If I can keep instilling that faith into the guys that it's going to be hard now, but keep your head down, work hard because it's going to feel so much better at the end of the tunnel, I really do believe in these guys that we can make it that far, and I want them to feel that level of success that I felt earlier in the summer."



Zagar and the Mustangs have had one of their best season starts in recent memory, going 10-1 in their first 11 games of the OUA regular season. Zagar is 5^th in Ontario with 87 total rebounds and 170 points this season. The Mustangs return to action after the holiday break on January 7^th at home against Windsor.