USA takes the women's title (Photo FIBA)
Lithuania men and the United States women are the champions of the FIBA 3×3 U23 World Cup 2026 after an action-packed final day at Hongshan Riverfront Park, with both teams overcoming tough challenges to claim the title in Wuhan.
The United States defeated Canada 15-10 in the Women’s Final to reclaim the U23 World Cup title, while Lithuania held off Latvia 19-18 to successfully defend their Men’s crown.
The United States navigated a demanding knockout run to claim their second FIBA 3×3 U23 World Cup Women’s title. After defeating the Netherlands 21-17 in the Quarter-Finals, USA overcame Spain 21-16 in the Semi-Finals to set up a championship showdown with Canada.
The Final was a low-scoring battle from start to finish. The USA opened with a 4-1 lead before Canada fought back to level at 5-5. Canada then moved ahead 9-7, but the Americans responded to regain the lead at 10-9 before pulling away late.
The USA held a 12-9 advantage inside the last minute and closed out the contest from the free-throw line to secure a 15-10 victory and their second U23 World Cup title.
Victoria Elizabeth Mckinney capped a superb tournament with another strong performance in the Final, recording six points, six rebounds, eight highlights and three blocks.
Lithuania successfully defended their Men’s title after edging Latvia 19-18 in a thrilling Final. The defending champions established control early, moving ahead 4-1 before extending their advantage to 10-6. Latvia continued to fight, cutting the deficit to 13-11 midway through the contest, but Lithuania repeatedly found an answer.
Lithuania led 18-13 with less than three minutes remaining and still held a 19-15 advantage inside the last two minutes. Latvia refused to go away, though, cutting the gap to 19-17 and then 19-18 after Lithuania entered the foul penalty and Latvia converted one of two free throws.
With the championship hanging in the balance, Lithuania held on through the final seconds to repeat as U23 World Cup Men’s champions.
MVPs
USA’s Victoria Elizabeth Mckinney was rewarded with the Women’s MVP award. She finished with 30 total points, 12 drives and a 44.7 total player value.
Lithuania’s Paulius Velutis was named Men’s MVP. He finished with 47 total points, third-most in the tournament, while his 26 highlights ranked second.
Men’s Standings
1. Lithuania (LTU) 2. Latvia (LAT) 3. Australia (AUS) 4. Serbia (SRB) 5. France (FRA) 6. New Zealand (NZL) 7. Netherlands (NED) 8. United States (USA) 9. Poland (POL) 10. Germany (GER) 11. Argentina (ARG) 12. Spain (ESP) 13. Republic of Korea (KOR) 14. China (CHN) 15. Egypt (EGY) 16. Algeria (ALG) 17. Kazakhstan (KAZ) 18. Philippines (PHI) 19. Kenya (KEN) 20. Tonga (TGA)
Women’s Standings
1. United States (USA) 2. Canada (CAN) 3. Spain (ESP) 4. Latvia (LAT) 5. Australia (AUS) 6. France (FRA) 7. China (CHN) 8. Netherlands (NED) 9. Egypt (EGY) 10. Czechia (CZE) 11. Uganda (UGA) 12. Japan (JPN) 13. Italy (ITA) 14. Kenya (KEN) 15. Slovenia (SLO) 16. Poland (POL) 17. Chinese Taipei (TPE) 18. Madagascar (MAD) 19. Philippines (PHI) 20. Tonga (TGA)
