Kalua Set to Make Debut for PNG Women’s 3x3 Basketball Team

Emerging basketball star, Hannah Kalua, has made the final cut for the Basketball Federation of Papua New Guinea (BFPNG) 3x3 women’s team to participate in the 2025 FIBA 3x3 Asia Cup slated from March 26th-30th in Singapore.

Hannah is from a mixed parentage of East Sepik and East New Britain, but she was born and raised in Lae, Morobe Province. 

She comes from a sports family. Her dad and siblings are passionate about AFL, while her mum played a bit of basketball when she was in high school.

Hannah began her basketball journey when she was 15 years old and progressed in the code. She took part in a few competitions and championships, winning a couple of titles in her blooming career. 

In 2022, she was in the PNG train-on squad but due to her studies, she withdrew from the squad. She did not regret her decision to pull out of the national side that year. Two years later, she earned a spot in the national team, fulfilling the long-held dream of representing her country.

The East New Britain-East Sepik lass stated that she was thankful to make it to the national side and mentioned some of the things she learned in the training over the last couple of months.  

“It is truly an honor, and I am thrilled and excited to be representing my country and my family,” Kalua said.

“I’ve learned discipline, consistency, commitment, and respect over the last three months. Being able to be disciplined on and off the court, be committed to the program, show that consistency of working hard when it gets harder, and respect everyone.”

She admitted that though it was very challenging to juggle her studies and play basketball, she pushed herself to the limit to manage her time well, ensuring that she performs academically in the classroom and on the court.

“When you love something, it’s really not that hard to make time for it. Balancing basketball and studies have been a great challenge for me, but basketball is my safe space,” Kalua said.

“When studies get tough, basketball is there to help me relax. It just takes discipline and commitment to balance my studies and basketball.”

Interestingly, 2025 is a special year for the 24-year-old because not only will she make her first appearance for PNG, but she will also be graduating with flying colors and attaining her Bachelor's Degree from the University of PNG. 

“Choosing my studies over basketball was very challenging. I was on the train-on squad for the Melanesian Cup in 2022, but I decided to pull out because of my school commitment,” Hannah explained.

“But, it’s all worth it. Now looking back, and being able to say I would be debuting and graduating in the same year is totally worth it.” 

The soon-to-be lawyer and PNG women’s 3x3 debutant looks forward to making her mark on the international stage in the 2025 FIBA 3x3 Asia Cup in Singapore.