PLACINGS
1. CANADA
2. Yugoslavia
3. United States
4. Cuba
5. China
6. Israel
7. Ivory Coast
8. Australia
9. Finland
10. Great Britain
11. Senegal
12. Angola
13. South Korea
14. Mexico
15. Egypt
16. Lebanon
17. Japan
18. Hong Kong
19. Jordan
20. Peru
21. Libya
CANADIANS
Kelly Dukeshire (Victoria, B.C./U of Victoria)
John Hatch (Calgary, Alta./St. Francis Xavier)
Gord Herbert (Penticton, B.C./U of Idaho)
Gerald Kazanowski (Nanaimo, B.C./U of Victoria)
William ‘Howard’ Kelsey (Vancouver, B.C./U of Oregon)
Ken Larson (Duncan, B.C./ U of Victoria)
Danny Meagher (St. Catharines, Ont./Duke)
Eli Pasquale (Sudbury, Ont./U of Victoria)
Tony Simms (Kingston, Jamaica/Boston University)
Karl Tilleman (Ogden, Utah/U of Calgary)
Jay Triano (Tillsonburg, Ont./Simon Fraser)
Bill Wennington (Montreal, Que./St. John’s)
Greg Wiltjer (Whitehorse, Yukon/Victoria)
Jack Donohue – coach
Steve Konchalski – assistant
Doc Ryan – assistant
Bruno Colavecchia – manager
Guntis Obrascovs – therapist
  POOL A CAN ANG JRD Record    
  Canada —– 130-42 117-26 (2-0)    
  Angola 42-130 —– 70-55 (1-1)    
  Jordan 26-117 55-70 —– (0-2)    
               
  POOL B USA LEB PER Record    
  United States —– 156-75 134-25 (2-0)    
  Lebanon 75-156 —– 104-86 (1-1)    
  Peru 25-134 86-104 —– (0-2)    
               
  POOL C CUB SEN HKG Record    
  Cuba —– 90-71 128-48 (2-0)    
  Senegal 71-90 —– 111-56 (1-1)    
  Hong Kong 48-128 56-111 —– (0-2)    
               
  POOL D YUG EGY RWA Record    
  Yugoslavia —– 122-50 2-0 (2-0)    
  Egypt 50-122 —– 2-0 (1-1)    
  Rwanda 0-2 0-2 —– (0-2)    
               
  POOL E ISR MEX GRE Record    
  Israel —– 99-71 2-0 (2-0)    
  Mexico 71-99 —– 2-0 (1-1)    
  Greece 0-2 0-2 —– (0-2)    
               
  POOL F AUS FIN JPN Record    
  Australia —– 67-64 88-66 (2-0)    
  Finland 64-67 —– 106-63 (1-1)    
  Japan 66-88 63-106 —– (0-2)    
               
  POOL G IVC KOR CAM Record    
  Ivory Coast —– 100-76 2-0 (2-0)    
  South Korea 76-100 —– 2-0 (1-1)    
  Cameroon 0-2 0-2 —– (0-2)    
               
  POOL H CHN GBR NIG Record    
  China —– 100-91 2-0 (2-0)    
  Great Britain 91-100 —– 2-0 (1-1)    
  Nigeria 0-2 0-2 —– (0-2)    
               
  CONSOLATION K JPN HKG JOR PER LIB Record
  Japan —– 138-69 98-52 89-62 150-72 (4-0)
  Hong Kong 69-138 —– 84-86 86-58 101-82 (2-2)
  Jordan 52-98 86-84 —– 70-78 101-62 (2-2)
  Peru 62-89 58-86 78-70 —– 133-70 (2-2)
  Libya 72-150 82-101 62-101 70-133 —– (0-4)
               
  CONSOLATION POOL I GBR ANG MEX EGY Record  
  Great Britain —– 111-73 77-70 99-86 (3-0)  
  Angola 73-111 —– 89-68 79-77 (2-1)  
  Mexico 70-77 68-89 —– 80-74 (1-2)  
  Egypt 86-99 77-79 74-80 —– (0-3)  
               
  CONSOLATION POOL J FIN SEN KOR LEB Record  
  Finland —– 71-57 95-78 129-76 (3-0)  
  Senegal 57-71 —– 98-93 98-81 (2-1)  
  South Korea 78-95 93-98 —– 121-73 (1-2)  
  Lebanon 76-129 81-98 73-121 —– (0-3)  
               
               
  SEMIS POOL L YUG CAN ISR CHN Record  
  Yugoslavia —– 63-54 100-75 107-83 (3-0)  
  Canada 54-63 —– 96-87 124-61 (2-1)  
  Israel 75-100 87-96 —– 91-71 (1-2)  
  China 83-107 61-124 71-91 —– (0-3)  
               
  SEMIS POOL M USA CUB AUS IVC Record  
  United States —– 99-84 100-52 104-65 (3-0)  
  Cuba 84-99 —– 90-50 107-82 (2-1)  
  Australia 52-100 50-90 —– 76-57 (1-2)  
  Ivory Coast 65-104 82-107 57-76 —– (0-3)  
     
  13-16th South Korea 95 Egypt 85
  13-16th Mexico 104 Lebanon 75
  9-12th Finland 110 Angola 91
  9-12th Great Britain 85 Senegal 82
  5-8th China 73 Australia 57
  5-8th Israel 82 Ivory Coast 81
  Semi Canada 85 United States 77
  Semi Yugoslavia 110 Cuba 92
  15th Egypt 112 Lebanon 87
  13th South Korea 100 Mexico 85
  11th Senegal 81 Angola 70
  9th Finland 94 Great Britain 87
  7th Ivory Coast 69 Australia 58
  5th China 83 Israel 82
  Bronze United States 119 Cuba 91
  Gold Canada 83 Yugoslavia 68
     

        Just prior to the start of the tournament, Libya sends a team that is inserted into the draw, on the proviso that it finishes no higher than 17th. Meanwhile, Peru team flew from Lima to Washington, D.C. at their own cost ($800 each) but did not have entry visas into Canada. They travelled by bus to Buffalo and then to Toronto, and finally by bus to Edmonton a 36-hour trip. The Peruvian women were supposed to be in the draw but the men showed. The Soviet men withdrew, leaving 21 teams in the draw.

        In pool A play, Canada opened by thumping Angola 130-42. It wasn’t much of a test, said coach Jack Donahue. “It was the only game we had. We didn’t have a choice on who we were going to play. We’re just happy that we played a game and played well. … We wanted to make sure we controlled the game. We wanted to make sure no one got hurt and we wanted a lot of people to play. We got everything we wanted out of it.” Canada led 59-15 at the half. Bill Wennington paced Canada with 26 on 11-12 from the floor, 4-4 from the line and 16 boards. Greg Wiltjer added 18 on 8-20 from the floor, 2-3 from the line, 9 boards and 2 assists. Tony Simms notched 16 on 5-7 from the floor, 6-8 from the line, 2 boards, 2 steals and 2 assists. Jay Triano scored 12 on 6-8 from the floor and 2 assists. John Hatch added 12 on 4-8 from the floor, 4-4 from the line and 5 boards. Danny Meagher scored 10 on 4-6 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 3 boards. Gerald Kazanowski notched 8 on 4-6 from the floor, 10 boards, 3 steals and 3 assists. Howard Kelsey added on 3-5 from the floor and 4 assists. Eli Pasquale scored 6 on 3-7 from the floor, 6 steals and 7 assists. Gord Herbert added 6 on 2-4 from the floor and 2-2 from the line. Kelly Dukeshire added 5 on 1-3 on the floor and 3-3 from the line. Karl Tilleman added 5 on 2-7 from the floor, 1-3 from the line, 2 boards, 2 steals and 4 assists. Canada hit 53-83 (.630) from the floor and 24-29 (.820) from the line, while garnering 51 boards, including 16 on the offensive glass, 23 fouls, 15 turnovers, 17 steals and 28 assists. Agostinho Joao paced Angola with 15 on 7-16 from the floor and 1-1 from the line. Jose Guimaraes added 12, Agostinho Matamba 7, Agostinho Costa 5, Jean Conceicao 2 and Manmel Junior 1, while Joao Koll, Domingos Pereira, Amaral Alexixo, Fernando Goncalves and Adriano Baiao were scoreless. Angola (coached by Vladimir Romero, assisted by Nelson Tavares) hit 17-58 (.290) from the floor and 8-19 (.420) from the line, while garnering 14 boards, including 6 on the offensive glass, 28 fouls, 21 turnovers and 2 steals.

Canada thrashed Jordan 117-26. Coach Jack Donohue said his troops weren’t trying to run up the score. “These kids are in a tough spot. We want them to gain cohesion and teamwork for our tough opponents later on while not showing up the weak ones. That ain’t easy.” Howard Kelsey paced Canada with 16 on 8-9 from the floor and 5 assists. Greg Wiltjer added 16 on 8-10 from the floor, 0-1 from the line and 8 boards. Tony Simms notched 15 on 6-10 from the floor, 3-3 from the line, 4 boards, 4 steals and 3 assists. Danny Meagher scored 12 on 6-10 from the floor, 3 steals and 2 assists. Karl Tilleman scored 10 on 5-8 from the floor. Bill Wennington notched 10 on 4-5 from the floor, 2-4 from the line, 7 boards and 3 steals. John Hatch added 9 on 3-7 from the floor, 3-4 from the line and 4 boards. Gerald Kazanowski notched 9 on 4-6 from the floor, 1-3 from the line, 3 boards and 2 steals. Gord Herbert added 8 on 4-6 from the floor, 4 boards, 2 steals and 6 assists. Jay Triano added 6 on 2-5 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 2 boards and 5 assists. Kelly Dukeshire scored 4 on 1-2 from the floor, 2-3 from the line and 4 boards. Eli Pasquale added 2 on 1-2 from the floor, 4 steals and 7 assists. Canada hit 52-80 (.650) from the floor and 13-20 (.650) from the line, while garnering 42 boards, including 12 on the offensive glass, 10 fouls, 14 turnovers, 21 steals and 3 assists. Butros Salim Janho paced Jordan with 8 on 3-9 from the floor, 2-3 from the line and 3 boards. Basel Mashour Qunash added 4, Anmar Awar Haddad 3, Samieer Fared Morcos 4, Ismael Rohy Rishik 2, Khaled Awad Abu Hilai 3 and Aisham Mahammad Mawajdeh 2, while Saleh Abdul Karim Nasser, Monther Hasham Mardini, Imad Sami Sarni, Ali Mohamed Abudullah, Wael Ali Tabbalat were scoreless. Jordan (coached by Samir Lutfieid Nassar, assisted by Ahmed Mohama Alayed Alali) hit 9-53 (.160) from the floor and 8-11 (.720) from the line, while garnering 17 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 16 fouls, 35 turnovers, 7 steals and 6 assists.

Canada advances to winner’s side pool.

        Canada thrashed China 124-61. Canadian coach Jack Donahue called it a foulfest. “I felt our players were being held, pushed and kneed. This isn’t brand new; we played the Chinese twice before.” China coach Chenghai Qian said his team tried to “keep some sportsmanship in the match. Maybe some of their players got excited on the court because they are young people. I don’t blame it on our good friend Mr. Donohue.” Canada took an early 18-8 lead and increased the margin to 62-35 at the half. Karl Tilleman paced Canada with 17 on 8-14 from the floor and 1-1 from the line. Howard Kelsey added 16 on 4-7 from the floor, 8-9 from the line, 6 boards, 3 steals and 5 assists. Eli Pasquale notched 15 on 5-5 from the floor, 5-5 from the line, 3 steals and 5 assists. Greg Wiltjer scored 15 on 5-10 from the floor, 5-6 from the line, 3 boards and 3 assists. John Hatch notched 14 on 6-8 from the floor, 5 boards, 2 steals and 3 assists. Tony Simms added 11 on 4-7 from the floor, 3-5 from the line, 2 boards, 3 steals and 2 assists. Jay Triano scored 10 on 4-8 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 2 steals and 3 assists. Danny Meagher scored 10 on 3-9 from the floor and 4-4 from the line. Gerald Kazanowski added 8 on 3-6 from the floor, 2-6 from the line and 6 boards. Gord Herbert scored 5 on 2-5 from the floor, 1-3 from the line and 3 assists. Bill Wennington added 2 on 1-3 from the floor, 6 boards and 2 steals. Kelly Dukeshire added 1 on 1-2 from the line. Canada hit 45-82 (.540) from the floor and 34-46 (.730) from the line, while garnering 32 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 19 fouls, 12 turnovers, 19 steals and 26 assists. Yaguang Li paced China with 18 on 7-22 from the floor and 4-6 from the line. Lubin Kuang added 13 on 6-13 from the floor, 1-2 from the line 2 assists. Libin Wang added 8, Pengshan Han 6, Jianli Liu 5, Bin Zhang 3, Jinging Lu 2, Yunlong Huang 2, Fengwu Sun 2 and Zhaoguang Ji 2, while Yonglin Guo and Yaonan Ma were scoreless. China (coached by Chenghai Qian, assisted by Changxin Lu) hit 25-74 (.330) from the floor and 11-19 (.570) from the line, while garnering 19 boards, including 7 on the offensive glass, 34 fouls, 25 turnovers, 6 steals and 12 assists.

        Canada rallied from five-point first half deficit to defeat Israel 96-87. The Canadians came out shooting like something typically found in a pasture as they fell behind the Israelis 25-12 and both sides suffered from inconsistent officiating by the French and Spanish referees. But midway through the first half, Canada was awarded seven straight free throws on a combination of fouls and technicals, and sank four of them to move ahead 28-27. Then Tony Simms slammed home a dunk and then stole the ball on the ensuing throw in as Canada took command. They moved ahead 58-44 at the half and led by as many as 18 when Israel began to rally and closed the margin to six with three minutes to play. Coach Jack Donohue lamented the officiating. “With our basketball team, it’s David and Goliath and nobody cheers for Goliath.” Jay Triano paced Canada with 21 on 9-16 from the floor, 3-3 from the line and 2 boards. Karl Tilleman added 14 on 7-11 from the floor. Eli Pasquale notched 13 on 3-9 from the floor, 7-11 from the line, 4 boards, 2 steals and 3 assists. Bill Wennington scored 10 on 4-6 from the floor, 2-3 from the line and 9 boards. John Hatch scored 10 on 3-9 from the floor, 4-4 from the line and 9 boards. Tony Simms added 9 on 3-8 from the floor and 3-3 from the line. Danny Meagher scored 8 on 2-6 from the floor, 4-5 from the line, 8 boards and 3 assists. Gerald Kazanowski added 5 on 2-4 from the floor, 1-3 from the line, 5 boards and 2 assists. Greg Wiltjer notched 4 on 2-5 from the floor and 3 boards. Howard Kelsey added 2, while Kelly Dukeshire and Gord Herbert were scoreless. Canada hit 36-75 (.480) from the floor and 24-32 (.750) from the line, while garnering 43 boards, including 21 on the offensive glass, 28 fouls, 20 turnovers, 10 steals and 12 assists. Haim Zlotikman paced Israel with 31 on 9-21 from the floor, 13-15 from the line and 6 boards. Korky Nelson added 15 on 6-11 from the floor, 3-4 from the line, 4 boards and 2 steals. Niv Bogin notched 14 on 6-9 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 4 assists. Shmuel Zisman added 11 on 5-8 from the floor, 1-2 from the line and 5 boards. Miguel Poyastro added 6, Israel Elimelech 6 and Yehuda Levi 4, while Doron Shefa, Michael Gorenstein, David Blatt, Mark Sack and Boaz Rimon were scoreless. Israel (coached by Samuel Yacobson, assisted by Chaim Buchbinder) hit 32-63 (.490) from the floor and 23-27 (.850) from the line, while garnering 24 boards, including 7 on the offensive glass, 27 fouls, 15 turnovers, 7 assists and 7 steals.

        Yugoslavia dispatched Canada 63-54. “We got into trouble right from the start with our cold shooting,” said coach Jack Donohue. “When you only have 26 points at the half, that’s a ridiculous number. … We wanted to go inside to the basket, but we weren’t getting good ball movement. We didn’t have any flow to our offence at all and you can’t win ball games with the number of points we scored.” Yugoslavia led 30-26 at the half. Drazen Petrovic paced Yugoslavia with 25 on 10-20 from the floor, 5-7 from the line, 3 boards and 4 steals. Rajko Zizic added 16 on 8-11 from the floor, 0-4 from the line and 6 boards. Ivan Sunara added 12 on 6-14 from the floor, 4 boards and 4 steals. Zarko Vucurovic added 4, Emir Mutapcic 2, Goran Grbovic 2 and Nebojsa Zorkic 2, while Marko Ivanovic, Velimir Perasovice, Jadranko Vujacic, Danko Cvjeticanin and Milenko Savovic were scoreless. Yugoslavia (coached by Dusan Ivkovic) hit 28-60 (.460) from the floor and 7-13 (.530) from the line, while garnering 17 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 21 fouls, 4 turnovers, 15 steals and 1 assist. Jay Triano paced Canada with 18 on 8-19 from the floor, 2-3 from the line and 4 steals. Danny Meagher added 12 on 3-7 from the floor, 6-6 from the line, 6 boards and 3 steals. John Hatch scored 8 on 4-8 from the floor, 8 boards and 3 steals. Tony Simms notched 6 on 1-6 from the floor and 4-4 from the line. Bill Wennington added 4 on 2-3 from the floor and 2 boards. Eli Pasquale scored 2 on 1-9 from the floor, 2 steals and 2 assists. Gerald Kazanowski added 2 on 1-5 from the floor, 5 boards and 2 steals. Greg Wiltjer added 2 on 1-4 from the floor and 3 boards, while Howard Kelsey, Karl Tilleman, Kelly Dukeshire and Gord Herbert were scoreless. Canada hit 21-69 (.300) from the floor and 12-13 (.920) from the line, while garnering 33 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 21 fouls, 12 turnovers, 15 steals and 2 assists.

        Canada advances to semi-finals with a (2-1) record.

        Canada stunned the previously undefeated Americans in the semis 85-77 in an utter fracas. A U.S. player was penalized for kicking and another ejected for rough play. Canada took an early lead and held on for the win. US coach Norm Stewart said defensive lapses proved the difference. “I was kinda hoping one of them would stand under the basket and guard it.” The United States later claimed they hadn’t sent their best team, to which the irrepressible Jack Donahue replied: “there’s no such thing as an American ‘B’ team.” The U.S. team included such future NBA stars as Charles Barkley and Karl Malone. Jay Triano wrote the word “ice” on the blackboard after the morning workout. “He’s written it every game and that’s how we’ve played,” said Donohue. “We talk about it a lot — intensity, concentration and enthusiasm. I’ve been telling people for a long time that we’ve got the greatest kids in the whole world playing for Canada. When you lose, nobody listens. These are the finest players I’ve worked with in my whole life.” Canada led 53-42 at the half. Eli Pasquale took command in the second half, scoring 10 in the last eight minutes after the U.S. had closed to within 59-58. Pasquale easily broke the US press and kept attacking off the dribble. “A lot of people don’t realize that this is the third time in two years we’ve beaten the Americans,” said Triano. “We get psyched up every time we play them because we think they’re the best basketball players in the world, we’ve got something to prove, being Canadians, because we see the guys we’re playing against all the time going into the National Basketball Association. The crowd was just fantastic. This is the first time I’ve played in Canada before that kind of crowd. We put on a pretty good show for them.” Danny Meagher said he wanted to defeat Duke teammate Johnny Dawkins. “When we lost to Yugoslavia the other night, I saw Johnny laughing and I just wanted to beat him. I want to win a gold for Canada, right at home; that’s the nicest thing I can think of right now.” Donohue, an American who moved to Ottawa in 1975 to become national coach, said he would review the Yugoslavian scouting report to plan for the championship game. “I’m concerned, of course,” said Donohue. “You guys all know Murphy’s law — anything that can go wrong will go wrong. I have Donohue’s law, which is that Murphy was an optimist. We’re not letting anything go wrong.” Triano paced Canada with 29 on 10-24 from the floor, 9-14 from the line, 2 boards and 3 assists. Pasquale added 15 on 3-13 from the floor, 9-11 from the line, 5 boards, 4 steals and 7 assists. Meagher added 15 on 6-9 from the floor, 3-4 from the line, 4 boards and 2 assists. Gerald Kazanowski scored 11 on 5-9 from the floor, 1-1 from the line, 5 boards, 2 steals and 2 assists. John Hatch added 7 on 2-5 from the floor and 3-4 from the line. Bill Wennington notched 5 on 2-2 from the floor and 1-1 from the line. Tony Simms scored 3 and Greg Wiltjer 1, while nabbing 5 boards. Howard Kelsey, Karl Tilleman, Kelly Dukeshire, and Gord Herbert were scoreless. Canada hit 28-69 (.400) from the floor and 29-40 (.720) from the line, while garnering 29 boards, including 14 on the offensive glass, 27 fouls, 13 turnovers, 8 steals and 15 assists. Eric Turner paced the US with 2 2on 10-18 from the floor, 2-3 from the line, 2 steals and 3 assists. Eddie Pinckney added 18 on 8-12 from the floor, 2-3 from the line and 6 boards. Charles Barkley notched 13 on 4-8 from the floor, 5-7 from the line, 8 boards and 2 assists. Bernard Thompson added 7, Johnny Dawkins 6, Gregory Cavener 5, John Humphries 4 and Kevin Willis 2, while Devin Durrant, Andre Goode, Malcolm Thomas and Karl Malone were scoreless. The US (coached by Stewart, assisted by Gerald Hueser) hit 31-62 from the floor and 15-24 (.620) from the line, while garnering 27 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 33 fouls, 18 turnovers, 5 steals and 15 assists.

        Canada captured gold by defeating Yugoslavia 83-68. A combo of Danny Meagher’s tenacity, Greg Wiltjer and Gerald Kazanowski’s rebounding, Jay Triano’s shooting; and the playmaking of point guard Eli Pasquale proved the difference. As in the semis, coach Jack Donohue started a small, pressing line-up in hopes of forcing errors. Canada led 47-28 at the half and were inspired by a crowd of 10,000. “We played the first half on emotion with the crowd and then said to ourselves at halftime: we’ve got 20 minutes of work to do and four weeks to rest afterward,” said Triano. Yugoslavia’s coach said his troops had difficulty getting motivated after falling behind in the first half. A partisan sign in the stands said “miracle on wood.” Jay Triano noted “And, for me, that seemed to say it all.” Danny Meagher paced Canada with 15 on 6-11 from the floor, 3-6 from the line, 8 boards and 5 steals. Triano added 14 on 6-16 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 2 steals. Gerald Kazanowski notched 11 on 4-7 from the floor, 3-3 from the line, 6 boards and 3 steals. Eli Pasquale scored 10 on 2-8 from the floor, 6-6 from the line, 3 boards and 4 steals. Greg Wiltjer added 9 on 3-5 from the floor, 3-5 from the line and 4 boards. Karl Tilleman scored 8 on 4-8 from the floor. John Hatch scored 8 on 4-7 from the floor, 5 boards and 2 steals. Howard Kelsey added 3, Kelly Dukeshire 2, Gord Herbert 2 and Bill Wennington 1, while Tony Simms was scoreless. Canada hit 30-70 (.420) from the floor and 23-32 (.710) from the line, while garnering 30 boards, including 14 on the offensive glass, 17 fouls, 13 turnovers, 21 steals and 2 assists. Drazen Petrovic paced Yugoslavia with 15 on 6-14 from the floor, 3-3 from the line, 2 steals and 3 assists. Ivan Sunara added 14 on 5-10 from the floor, 4-4 from the line and 3 boards. Rajko Zizic scored 13 on 5-12 from the floor, 3-5 from the line and 4 boards. Goran Grbovic scored 8, Velimir Perasovic 4, Jadranko Vujacic 4, Zeroko Vucurovic 4, Milenko Savovic 4 and Nebojsa Zorkic 2, while Marko Ivanovic, Emir Mutapcic and Danko Cvjeticanin were scoreless. Yugoslavia hit 27-62 (.430) from the floor and 14-17 (.820) from the line, while garnering 18 boards, including 8 on the offensive glass, 24 fouls, 17 turnovers, 10 steals and 3 assists.