The Fiji men will be looking for redemption at the FIBA Melanesian Cup 2022 as they host reigning champions Papua New Guinea and look for a winning start to the tournament.
In 2017 at the Melanesian Cup the Fijians were defeated by New Caledonia 70-73 in their first match of the tournament which was dominated by Papua New Guinea who went through undefeated.
Fiji won the bronze medal at the Pacific Games in 2019.
Assistant Coach, William Peter says the team has been preparing well for the Melanesian Cup with everyone eager to impress in front of a home crowd.
He says the team has been preparing since August with daily sessions for the squad of 15 and have two young players in the squad and that combined with a lot of experience.
He adds they have a solid range of talent.
Assistant Coach Peter highlighted Joshua Fox, Filimone Waqabaca and Mataika Koyamainavure as players to watch with Orisi Naivalurua always a consistent competitor.
Both Fox and Koyamainavure will both be eager to continue their form and lead their team to a gold medal in front of their home crowd at the FIBA Melanesian Cup 2022.
The top two teams at the Melanesian Cup will qualify for the 2023 Pacific Games in the Solomon Islands.
The Pacific Games then serves as the official qualifier for the Oceania region to the FIBA Asia Cup Pre-Qualifiers.
The Fiji men will play their first game against New Caledonia at 8.30pm on Wednesday at the Vodafone Arena.
Source : FIBA Basketball
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