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Coming in Clutch: Vancouver Bandits host new tournament to cap off basketball season

Two boys are playing basketball on a crowded court. One is wearing a red jersey and holding the ball trying to score, the other is wearing a dark green jersey and defending against the other.
A boy drives to the hoop to score against a defender at the Langley Events Centre during a community training camp. Photo courtesy of the Vancouver Bandits/CEBL.
Teryn Midzain - CIVL - Abbotsford • BC | 04-08-2023
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The Vancouver Bandits are hosting a new basketball tournament, the 3x3 Clutch Tournament, next weekend to finish the season.

Teams of threes and fours across multiple divisions for different age groups and levels of competition, as part of the Canadian Elite Basketball Leagure (CEBL) Championship celebrations.

Andrew Savory, communications manager for the Vancouver Bandits, says that the idea for three-on-three Clutch stems from showcasing the development of three-on-three basketball and builds off the growth from being popular in Europe and Asia. It first appeared as an Olympic sport at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

“It was really important to showcase the sport of three on three basketball, it's a game that's attributed to development. What I mean by that is it allows you to have more touches on the ball, which allows for faster development, more participation, inclusion and accessibility.”

Savory adds that the Clutch tournament is another way of showcasing the basketball players and clubs that the Bandits knows is around their home court in Langley and the surrounding Fraser Valley.

“There's just as much basketball being played in B. C. as there is in hotbeds like the Greater Toronto Area of Ontario, you just have to turn over the rock and look for it.”

Currently, 30 teams have already signed up for the tournament this August, each with guaranteed playing time. Savory could see tournaments being hosted in multiple cities across the Lower Mainland, Savory sees Abbotsford and UFV a place ripe to host a tournament of its own.

"I think UFV has a great number of facilities. It's something where, uh, UFV multiple gyms, they have the cascades across multiple different athletic, uh, disciplines participating there. And it's definitely ready for a tournament such as three on three clutch. And that's something that, uh, we would consider our own backyard.”

The three-on-three Clutch tournament will take place on Aug. 12 as part of the CEBL Championship festivities, a weekend long event that includes the conference finals games, as well as the finals to cap off the end of season. 

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