| FINAL STANDINGS 1. Brazil 2. CANADA 3. United States 4. Dominican Republic 5. Argentina 6. Puerto Rico 7. Venezuela 8. Mexico | CANADIANS Anthony Bennett – Brampton, Ont. Sim Bhullar – Brampton, Ont. Dillon Brooks – Mississauga, Ont. Junior Cadougan – Toronto, Ont. Aaron Doornekamp – Odessa, Ont. Melvin Ejim – Toronto, Ont. Carl English – Paradise, Nfld. Brady Heslip – Burlington, Ont. Daniel Mullings – Scarborough, Ont. Jamal Murray – Kitchener, Ont. Andrew Nicholson – Mississauga, Ont. Kyle Wiltjer – Portland, Ore. Jay Triano – coach Dave Smart – assistant David Vanterpool – assistant Bryan Gates – assistant Steve Nash – general manager Rowan Barrett – assistant general manager Kade Beard – video coordinator Scott O’Brien – statistician Sam Gibbs – lead IST Jason Meehan – therapist Charlie Weingroff – strength & conditioning David Cox – psychologist Marc Bubbs – nutritionist Mat Yorke – manager Jeremy Cross – manager |
| POOL A | CAN | DOM | ARG | MEX | Record | ||
| Canada | —– | 105-88 | 88-83 | 96-76 | (3-0) | ||
| Dominican Republic | 88-105 | —– | 60-80 | 95-70 | (1-2) | ||
| Argentina | 83-88 | 80-60 | —– | 84-86 | (1-2) | ||
| Mexico | 76-96 | 70-95 | 86-84 | —– | (1-2) | ||
| POOL B | BRZ | USA | PUR | VEN | Record | ||
| Brazil | —– | 93-83 | 92-59 | 79-64 | (3-0) | ||
| United States | 83-93 | —– | 102-70 | 85-62 | (2-1) | ||
| Puerto Rico | 59-92 | 70-102 | —– | 89-72 | (1-2) | ||
| Venezuela | 64-79 | 62-85 | 72-89 | —– | (0-3) | ||
| Semi | Canada 111 United States 108 | |
| Semi | Brazil 68 Dominican Republic 62 | |
| 7th | Venezuela 83 Mexico 59 | |
| 5th | Argentina 105 Puerto Rico 85 | |
| Bronze | United States 87 Dominican Republic 82 | |
| Final | Brazil 86 Canada 71 | |
In their opener, Canada thumped the Dominican Republic 105-88 after leading 20-17, 54-37 and 76-62 at the quarters. Canada took command in the second quarter as Brady Heslip kept nailing treys and their defence generated runout layups. “We had a lot of guys step up and play well for us tonight,” said Canadian coach Jay Triano. “We performed well offensively, but with stronger defense, our offense can become even better.” Heslip’s perimeter shooting was exceptional in the first half. “It was a lot of fun playing in Toronto again and we are all excited to get this win,” Heslip told CBC. “We’re just glad we could get the nerves out and still get a W. … My role is to come in and score, and I’m going to do that.” General manager Steve Nash told the Toronto Sun that Heslip is “becoming a guy that you can’t leave off of the team. He just brings something to the table that is so valuable. Every time the level is raised, he finds a way to raise his game to that level. As you saw tonight, he was a special player. You don’t want to bet against a guy like Brady. He figures it out.” Heslip told the Sun that “I do more than just shoot the ball. I’ve been working a lot on (having more ways to put up points) and I proved that this year. My role is to come in and score the ball and I’m going to do that.” Triano told the Sun he was surprised that the Dominican Republic left Heslip so wide open. “Brady is a shooter, it’s not a secret. The Dominicans probably knew that but other teams are going to focus on him so we’re going to have to get other people to step up and when they do, that’ll open things up for Brady again.” Meanwhile, 18-year-old Jamal Murray was impressive in his debut performance with the senior team. “I play with older guys all of the time,” he said. “It’s more physical, but once you run up the court a couple times, you get a good feel for the game.” Murray told the National Post “My jump, my bounce is underrated. But we’ll find out what we can do later on in the tournament in transition.” Triano told the Post that Murray has “got a great poise to him. He knows how to control the game. He moves the basketball, can score the basketball. We’re working with him on how to defend against men that he’s never really had to play against before.” Nash told the Toronto Star that Murray has “got a tremendous amount of ability, he’s got a very bright future. It’s very exciting for our program. But it’s also exciting for me as a point guard to see a young player come through with that much ability is very fun and exciting.” Triano told the Star that Murray “has a confidence about him. I asked him once if he was tired . . . he said, ‘Coach, I’m 18.’ … He’s got that attitude — he wants to be on the floor and he’s a great kid to coach.” Heslip told the Star that Murray is “mature for his age. When I was younger and we were playing against men it’s obviously an adjustment period, but he seems to be coming along pretty quick. You just figure it out as you go.” Triano told CBC that Canada also benefitted greatly from Anthony Bennett’s play. “he was great. His effort and energy was really good throughout the whole game.” Triano added that “we’re going to need all 12 players. We’re going to have to get better. The competition is going to get a lot better.” Triano told Canadian Press that “we learned a lot tonight but we had a couple of guys that didn’t have very good games. They’re going to have to bounce back. That’s the one great thing about these tournaments — five games in five days. Different guys have to step up on different occasions. We’re going to need all 12 players. … We’ve got a starting point right now. We’re going to have to get better at this tournament goes on. The competition is going to get better every game.” Nash told Canadian Press “we got a much-needed victory in the first game. It’s obviously a new environment for our guys. It’s very rare that Canadians get to play a meaningful game in their own country.” Brady Heslip paced Canada with 24 on 4-5 from the floor, 5-10 from the arc and 1-3 from the line. Anthony Bennett added 15 on 7-13 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 10 boards. Andrew Nicholson added 14 on 5-10 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 5 boards. Melvin Ejim notched 12 on 5-5 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 3 boards and 4 assists. Jamal Murray added 12 on 5-6 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-3 from the line, 2 boards and 2 assists. Daniel Mullings added 7 on 3-4 from the floor, 1-3 from the line, 2 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Junior Cadougan notched 6 on 1-2 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 3 boards and 2 assists. Carl English scored 5 on 1-2 from the floor and 1-3 from the arc. Aaron Doornekamp added 4 on 2-6 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 5 boards and 4 assists. Dillon Brooks added 2, Kyle Wiltjer 2 and Sim Bhullar 2, along with 2 boards and 2 blocks. Angel Suero paced the Dominican Republic with 17 on 5-8 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 7-9 from the line, 3 boards and 2 assists. Angel Delgado added 15 on 6-11 from the floor, 3-5 from the line and 6 boards. Edward Santana notched 11 on 4-7 from the floor, 3-4 from the line and 3 boards. Rigoberto Mendoza added 10 on 1-1 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc and 2-3 from the line. James E. Stokley added 9, along with 4 boards and 2 assists, Manuel Guzman 7, Manuel Fortuna 6, along with 2 boards, Miguel Dicent 5 and Nehemias Morillo 2, along with 2 boards, while Jose Acosta and Juan Garcia were scoreless. Acosta nabbed 2 boards. The Dominican Republic hit 32-77 (.420) overall, 28-59 (.470) from the floor, 4-18 (.220) from the arc and 20-28 (.710) from the line, while garnering 34 boards, including 14 on the offensive glass, 10 assists, 15 turnovers, 8 steals and 19 fouls.
Canada improved to (2-0) in pool play by edging Argentina 88-83 with a late fourth-quarter rally. The game was tied at 24 after one quarter. Argentina led 50-44 at the half. They built their lead to 13 in the third quarter as Canada got in foul trouble. But Andrew Nicholson rallied Canada to within 66-59 after three quarters. Jamal Murray brought Canada to within two with a trey with the shot clock expiring. Nicholson then put Canada ahead 70-69 with another late three-pointer in a 9-0 run. With the game tied at 80, Brady Heslip nailed a trey with 37 seconds remaining and then three free throws to move Canada ahead. Canada had several defensive lapses early, though Bennett had nine of Canada’s first 12 points, hitting every shot he tried including a trey. Jamal Murray hit his first two shots for five points and then scored Canada’s first eight points of the second quarter, showing his hustle charging back down the court to deny a layup after an Argentine steal, while Anthony Bennett asserted himself in the blocks. Then Argentina got hot. A 12-0 run late in the second quarter, during which Bennett was called for his third foul, gave the Argentinians the lead at the half. Canadian general manager Steve Nash told the Canadian Press that Bennett has “come in with a great attitude, he’s really hungry to represent his country and improve and this is a really important summer for him. He’s a had a tough go his first two years but he’s really good kid so you just want to be here as a resource and help him realize his potential and play a lot and figure some things out with his game and where he can maximize his advantages on the floor. But most important he’s worked hard, he’s got a great attitude and he’s put himself in position to improve.” Coach Jay Triano added that “that’s two great games for him, he had 15 and 10 the other night (against Dominican Republic) and we said coming into this, this is going to be big thing for him with his ability to score in so many ways, the effort and energy he’s putting in right now. The guy hangs a picture of his jersey in his locker, he’s proud to be Canadian, he’s proud to wear this uniform. That says a lot about the way he’s acting and the way he’s playing out here.” Triano said of the game-winner that “they weren’t going to lose Brady after studying him the other night so we tried to get Brady and Andrew (Nicholson) on the same side of the floor and see if you could set it up.” Triano told the National Post that Canada struggled with Argentina’s physicality. “That’s one of things that we have to grow as a team, understanding the international game. Some games are going to be super physical, that’s how they wanted to play tonight. I think we had four, five guys with four fouls. We had to change our lineup, we had to go small in order to keep players on the floor, but that’s understanding the game. If it’s going to be called like that, either you have to match it, or you have to be able to play through the physicality. And I think our guys grew as the game went on. “We thought Andy [Nicholson] would have an advantage in the post. We didn’t do a very good job. They pressured us a lot in the first half. We finally were able to swing the ball and set the tide, punch it inside, and get him some looks. We were trying to get him looks inside; he’s a good low post scorer. They weren’t going to leave Brady (Heslip), they were scouting him from the other night, so we tried to get Brady and Andrew on the same side of the floor to punch it in.” Bennett told the Post that he felt “relaxed. Just going out there, playing like I had at UNLV — coaches, players, everybody just helping me out with that. … [Heslip] hit that three at the end of the game in the last 30 seconds. That was definitely a big bucket.” Heslip told the Toronto Sun that “they didn’t give me many looks in the second half, so, as soon as (his opponent) fell down I was like, ‘Oh, I’ve got to get this one off.’ So, I just saw him fall, ref didn’t blow the whistle, I just pulled up, rolled around, (it) went in. I was due for one, so, I’m glad it went down.” Anthony Bennett told the Sun that Sim Bhullar “was definitely a big key to the win. He got in and did what he needs to do, block shots, rebound and run the floor. That’s pretty much all we ask for.” Bhullar told the Sun that in the “first half, I didn’t play so well, but coach gave me a chance in the second half. (Changing shots) that’s a big reason I’m on the team. There’s no three in the key, it’s an advantage. I’m here to help the team win.” Andrew Nicholson paced Canada with 24 on 7-11 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 7-10 from the line, 12 boards and 2 assists. Jamal Murray added 20 on 2-8 from the floor, 4-7 from the arc, 4-4 from the line and 2 boards. Anthony Bennett added 17 on 4-4 from the floor, 2-2 from the arc, 3-3 from the line, 6 boards and 2 assists. Brady Heslip added 10 on 2-5 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 3-4 from the line and 2 boards. Daniel Mullings added 8 on 2-5 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 4-4 from the line and 4 boards. Sim Bhullar scored 4 on 2-3 from the floor, 2 boards and 3 blocks. Aaron Doornekamp added 4 on 1-2 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc and 2-2 from the line. Junior Cadougan added 1, along with 2 boards and 4 assists, while Melvin Ejim, Carl English, Dillon Brooks and Kyle Wiltjer were scoreless. Ejim nabbed 3 boards and blocked 2 shots. Canada hit 28-62 (.450) overall, 20-42 (.480) from the floor, 8-20 (.400) from the arc and 24-29 (.830) from the line, while garnering 35 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 13 assists, 11 turnovers, 2 steals, 7 blocks and 26 fouls. Facundo Campazzo paced Argentina with 23 on 4-6 from the floor, 4-7 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 3 boards, 5 assists and 2 steals. Nicolas Laprovitola added 22 on 2-5 from the floor, 3-7 from the arc, 9-9 from the line, 2 boards, 7 assists and 3 steals. Nicolas Richotti added 9, along with 5 boards, 4 assists and 2 steals, Nicolas Brussino 9, Marcos Delia 7, along with 5 boards, Juan Manuel Torres 6, Federico Aguerre 5 and Patricio Garino 2, while Luca Vildoza, Marcos Mata, Tayavek Gallizzi and Matias Bortolin were scoreless. Argentina hit 24-62 (.390) overall, 13-32 (.410) from the floor, 11-30 (.370) from the arc, and 24-28 (.860) from the line, while garnering 26 boards, including 5 on the offensive glass, 18 assists, 10 turnovers, 7 steals, 2 blocks and 30 fouls.
Canada closed out pool play at (3-0) after dusting Mexico 96-76. Canada had foul trouble in Wednesday’s win against Argentina and it looked like more of the same when Andrew Nicholson got two early fouls, including a technical, and went to the bench. But a 17-0 run late in the first quarter that saw the Mexicans miss seven straight shots, make three turnovers and commit five fouls had the Canadians ahead 27-16 going into the second. A sloppy second quarter for both sides didn’t change much, with Nicholson and Melvin Ejim exiting late in the going after drawing a third foul. Canada led 49-39 at the half. Canada extended the lead to 21 in the third and led 71-57 heading into the final frame. “I think one of the surprises of the tournament has been Daniel Mullings,” Canadian coach Jay Triano told the National Post. “His activity — I mean he causes problems at the defensive end which allows us to use our athleticism. He gets a steal and then we start to run. I liked everything.” Melvin Ejim told the Post that “I think, honestly, (I am) getting more comfortable with the game, getting more comfortable with being on the perimeter, being able to play inside and out. On this team my role is to be a versatile guy. That means covering different players. That means playing different positions. That means rebounding, and doing what I’ve got to do to help the team win.” Triano added that “I always like to have shooters. You can see Argentina (Wednesday) night — those point guards shot the ball and kept them in the game. (Thursday night), Mexico hung around because of their ability to shoot the basketball from the three-point line. The more shooters we can have in this country the better.” Anthony Bennett told the Toronto Star that “we (he and Andrew Nicholson) both do multiple things very well, these games kind of bring out our talent, we just got to push each other.” Triano told the Star that Nicholson and Bennett are “interchangeable as pieces, one can be a five, one can be a four. Everyone wants to know who the four and the five are. They are both fours and they are both fives. I like (Bennett) down closer to the basket, (Wednesday) we posted up Andrew Nicholson all night. That flexibility is good, we can pick on a defender we think we have an advantage on.” Triano said of Nicholson’s technical fouls that “he’s fired up, I want him to play like that. I don’t want him to walk around like a zombie, I want him to play with passion, that’s when he’s at his best. But … it’s avoiding the technicals, don’t talk to the referees and you’ll be all right. … Win or lose, getting to this point has been great for our young players. To get to play in their own country and to get the experience they have against veteran international players. I mean look at these teams. They are not young like us. They are guys who have been around the block and (our young guys) need to learn the international game and there’s no better way to do it than against these teams.” “With the short preparation, you’re not sure how your team is going to adapt and come together, but we do look like we’re coming together,” Canada Basketball executive vice-president and assistant general manager Rowan Barrett told SportsNet. “And we’ve never won a medal before, so we have a chance to make some history.” Brady Heslip paced Canada with 20 on 4-6 from the floor and 4-7 from the arc. Jamal Murray added 14 on 5-5 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 5 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Andrew Nicholson added 11 on 2-7 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 4-4 from the line and 10 boards. Anthony Bennett added 10 on 0-1 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 7-10 from the line and 8 boards. Carl English added 9 on 0-2 from the floor, 3-4 from the arc and 4 boards. Melvin Ejim notched 8 on 2-4 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-3 from the line, 2 boards and 2 assists. Junior Cadougan added 6 on 2-4 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-3 from the line, 2 boards and 2 assists. Dillon Brooks added 5 on 1-2 from the floor and 1-2 from the arc. Aaron Doornekamp added 5 on 1-3 from the arc and 2-2 from the line. Sim Bhullar notched 5 on 2-2 from the floor, 1-4 from the line, 2 boards and 2 blocks. Daniel Mullings added 3 on 1-1 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc and 1-2 from the line, while Kyle Wiltjer was scoreless and nabbed 2 boards. Canada hit 32-61 (.520) overall, 19-33 (.580) from the floor, 13-28 (.460) from the arc and 19-29 (.660) from the line, while garnering 44 boards, including 13 on the offensive glass, 9 assists, 14 turnovers, 6 steals, 3 blocks and 19 fouls. Orlando Mendez paced Mexico with 24 on 3-5 from the floor, 5-13 from the arc, 3-3 from the line, 2 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Gabriel Giron added 18 on 5-9 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 5-8 from the line, 4 boards, 4 assists and 2 steals. Francisco Cruz scored 14 on 4-8 from the floor, 2-9 from the arc, 4 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Marco A. Ramos added 10 on 1-3 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 4 boards. Jesus A. Gonzalez added 5, along with 3 boards, Jose Guitierrez 4, along with 3 boards, and Jesus Lopez 1, along with 3 boards, while Edgar Garibay, Carlos Toussaint, David Meza, Hector Hernandez and Rodrigo Zamora were scoreless. Mexico hit 27-69 (.390) overall, 16-36 (.440) from the floor, 11-33 from the arc and 11-15 (.730) from the line, while garnering 30 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 8 assists, 9 turnovers, 6 steals, 4 blocks and 28 fouls.
In the semis, Canada defeated the United States 111-108 in overtime as 18-year-old Jamal Murray scored all 22 of his points in the fourth quarter and overtime, including a game-tying triple with 36 seconds left and a stretch of eight points in a minute that turned a one-point deficit into a 111-106 lead with 55 seconds left in play. “I’ve been in those situations before,” Murray told SportsNet. “I just go out there and play on a big stage — I’m just playing basketball, really.” Canadian general manager Steve Nash added that “he’s … got such balls and he’s not afraid of the moment. He embraces the moment and that’s why he’s very, very special.” Andrew Nicholson and Andrew Bennett, meanwhile, were stellar in the blocks, Nash said. “They came out with the right frame of mind, they weren’t awed by the moment and they played hard. We made plenty of mistakes but we also made tremendously great plays and had a lot of guts at the end to stick with it. There was a stretch there where they came at us pretty good and we came right back. I’m very, very proud of our guys.” Canada led 24-23 after one quarter and 52-47 at the half. The United States led 80-74 after three quarters. The score was knotted at 97 after regulation. Murray is “a special, special kid,” Canada Basketball general manager Steve Nash told the Toronto Star. “There was a moment there, I think it was early in the fourth, where I thought maybe we should go back to Junior (Cadougan, the starting point guard) . . . defensively he’s always in the right place, and Jamal has his moments where he’s 18,” said Nash. “From there on he was just incredible, and it just shows he’s . . . got such balls and he’s not afraid of the moment. He embraces the moment and that’s why he’s very, very special.” Coach Jay Triano told the Star that “I asked them this morning at shootaround to stand up at their locker and turn around and look at the names, because in everyone’s locker we have their number and a list of the players who have worn that number for Canada. They looked at the list and there were some pretty good names there, but none of them have won a medal for Canada at the Pan Am Games. I said, ‘Let’s be the first ones.’ They can rest their hat on that.” Andrew Nicholson was a force in the first half and scored seven of Canada’s first eight points in the second half. But the Americans erased a five-point halftime deficit and reeled off an 11-3 run fuelled by three straight three-pointers by Denzel Valentine to lead by seven. The Americans missed their first five two-point shot attempts but kept in the game by sinking four three-pointers early. Canada’s Aaron Doornekamp was forced to the bench midway through the first quarter with three fouls. Canada led 24-23 at the end of the quarter. Two fouls to Bennett brought Sim Bhullar onto the floor to cheers and the seven-foot-five behemoth obliged with a bucket from in close. Back-to-back Brady Heslip baskets gave Canada a 41-34 lead, its biggest of the game. The U.S. closed the gap, only to see Nicholson sink back-to-back three-pointers to restore a seven-point lead. A third foul midway through the third sent Bennett back to the bench, leaving Nicholson to carry the load. Canada Basketball executive vice-president Rowan Barrett said “our kids have been going down into the U.S. to play since they were young teens and some even before that and they’re usually pretty successful when they go down there. So, they actually have an expectation of beating the Americans.” Andrew Nicholson paced Canada with 31 on 9-11 from the floor, 3-9 from the arc, 4-6 from the line and 10 boards. Jamal Murray added 22 on 4-10 from the floor, 4-8 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 4 boards and 6 assists. Anthony Bennett added 18 on 6-8 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 14 boards and 2 assists. Brady Heslip added 8 on 1-4 from the floor, 2-7 from the arc and 2 assists. Junior Cadougan added 6 on 1-1 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 1-1 from the line and 3 assists. Melvin Ejim added 6 on 3-6 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc and 3 boards. Sim Bhullar scored 5 on 2-3 from the floor, 1-1 from the line and 2 blocks. Carl English scored 5 on 1-1 from the floor, 0-4 from the arc, 3-4 from the line and 2 boards. Aaron Doornekamp added 4 on 1-2 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 5 boards. Daniel Mullings added 4 on 2-2 from the floor and 2 assists. Dillon Brooks added 2, while Kyle Wiltjer was scoreless. Canada hit 43-86 overall, 30-48 (.630) from the floor, 13-38 from the arc and 12-16 from the line, while garnering 50 boards, including 17 on the offensive glass, 18 assists, 12 turnovers, 5 blocks and 24 fouls. Bobby Brown paced the United States with 25 on 6-11 from the floor, 2-9 from the arc, 7-8 from the line and 7 boards. Anthony Randolph added 21 on 5-9 from the floor, 3-7 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 6 boards, 2 assists and 2 blocks. Ronald Baker notched 15 on 4-5 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 2 assists and 3 steals. Denzel Valentine added 11 on 1-2 from the floor, 3-6 from the arc and 3 boards. Taurean Prince added 9, along with 2 boards, Damien Wilkins 8, along with 2 boards and 2 assists, Kaleb Tarczewski 7, along with 2 boards, Romelo Trimble 5, Ryan Hollins 4 and Keith Langford 3, while Malcom Brogdon and Shawn Long were scoreless. The United States hit 38-80 (.480) overall, 25-46 (.540) from the floor, 13-34 (.380) from the arc and 19-23 (.830) from the line, while garnering 29 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 16 assists, 4 turnovers, 4 steals, 5 blocks and 20 fouls.
In the final, Brazil thrashed Canada 86-71 after leading 26-13, 48-29 and 67-54 at the quarters. Canada relinquished 15-0 run in the first quarter and then began jacking bad shots. They appeared completely outclassed at the guard spots, while none of the guards appeared capable of hitting the open jumper. Point guards Junior Cadougan and Jamal Murray appeared unwilling to distribute the ball to teammates and defensively, Canada had no answers to Brazil’s crisp ball movement and pick-and-rolls. Canada trailed by 25 before rallying to within six down the stretch but repeatedly coughed up the ball on sloppy passes as Brazil reasserted command. “We’re making progress,” said general manager Steve Nash told the Toronto Star. “It’s exciting. I think it was a terrific week for a lot of guys . . . to gain experience. And the result’s great. To beat the U.S. in the Pan Ams and make it to the gold-medal game and come up with a silver, it was an excellent result for us. In the big picture it was great, because we are moving in the right direction. Guys are getting experience. In this tournament, for us to finish higher than we’ve ever finished is fantastic.” Coach Jay Triano added that the tournament gave “a lot of guys an opportunity to put on the Canadian jersey, guys who are going to be there in the future, some guys who have been in the program who might not wear it again. It was an interesting team, I don’t regret how we did it. I think we had the best players who were available given the circumstances.” Jamal Murray said “this helped me a lot. I got to know a lot of the guys on this team and some great coaches around me. I got a lot of experience playing internationally. It’s a more physical game with a lot of little tricks you’ve gotta learn, but I had fun playing with a lot of great players. From my perspective, age doesn’t matter. My body and my mind are still young. I’m learning a lot from the older heads on my team.” Triano said his troops ran out of gas down the stretch. “We had a quick turnaround and were a bit sluggish to start. I don’t think we had the bounce that we’ve had in other games. I think we found it at halftime. Why it wasn’t there in the first half, I don’t know. They’re the best passing team in the tournament, the best shooting team in the tournament, the best defensive team in the tournament. Those three things are going to win you a lot of games.” Triano told Yahoo.ca that “I don’t like losing a game like that, but … we grew up throughout this tournament, we also grew up in this game a little bit. We never quit and I thought the guys really played well in the second half.” Murray told Yahoo that “we put ourselves in a hole and tried to dig ourselves out of it, but it wasn’t enough. They hit shots all game and we couldn’t slow them down.” But winning Canada’s first Pan Am medal was historic, he added. “It wasn’t a happy ending today, but we’re the first group to ever do this. We’re still proud of what we did.” Triano told the Canadian Press “I don’t think we had the bounce that we’ve had in other games. I think we found it at halftime. Why it wasn’t there at the beginning, I don’t know.” Brazil started slowly with a pair of turnovers and two missed three-pointers. But that all changed when the Brazilians, down 11-9, reeled off a 17-0 run during which Canada missed 11 straight shots. Melvin Ejim finally ended the five minute six-second drought with a bucket with 29 seconds remaining in the first. A shell-shocked Canada, with Anthony Bennett on the bench with two fouls, trailed 26-13 at the end of the first quarter. Canada missed its first 9 shots in the second quarter. Andrew Nicholson, after making a block at the other end, finally sank a trey with four minutes remaining. Brazil led by as many as 19. Canada notched an 11-2 run that cut the deficit to 64-50 in the third quarter. Nash told Sportsnet.ca that “obviously we wanted to win. On another night, maybe we could have. But we were taught a little bit of a lesson tonight. I think it’s good. Guys need to learn. We played against a very experienced and smart Brazil team that moved the ball and makes you pay for your mistakes. Those are invaluable lessons. You can’t learn those through a textbook. The most important [thing] for us is to come together and build a team that has some cohesion, understanding and has a little bit more experience where we can say in these moments, like against Brazil in the first half tonight, ‘Stay within 10 of them’. … There was a stretch where it got away from us. And then in the second half, we needed too many balls to bounce our way when it was a six-point game, and they didn’t fall for us.” Augusto Lima paced Brazil with 13 on 6-7 from the floor, 1-1 from the line, 3 boards and 2 steals. Larry Taylor added 13 on 6-6 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc and 1-4 from the line, Rafael Hettsheimeir added 13 on 2-3 from the floor, 3-6 from the arc and 3 boards. Carlos Nascimento added 10 on 3-7 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 1-1 from the line and 2 boards. Vitor Benite added 9, along with 5 boards and 7 assists, Leonardo Meindl 8, along with 5 boards, 5 assists and 2 steals, Rafael Souza 7, along with 3 boards Rafael Freire Luz 5, along with 7 boards and 7 assists, Ricardo Rischer 4, along with 2 boards and 3 assists, Joao Paulo Batista 4, along with 2 boards, while Marcus Toledo was scoreless. Brazil hit 34-64 (.530) overall, 25-42 (.600) from the floor, 9-22 (.410) from the arc and 9-13 (.690) from the line, while garnering 35 boards, including 6 on the offensive glass, 25 assists, 15 turnovers, 6 steals, 2 blocks and 26 fouls. Anthony Bennett paced Canada with 18 on 6-10 from the floor, 0-4 from the arc, 6-8 from the line and 9 boards. Jamal Murray added 12 on 1-5 from the floor, 2-7 from the arc, 4-4 from the line and 3 boards. Andrew Nicholson notched 11 on 3-7 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 3 boards. Dillon Brooks added 11 on 2-3 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 4-5 from the line and 4 boards. Melvin Ejim added 10 on 2-5 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 6-6 from the line, 5 boards and 2 steals. Carl English added 3 on 1-1 from the arc and 2 boards. Brady Heslip added 3 on 0-2 from the floor and 1-6 from the arc. Aaron Doornekamp added 2 on 1-2 from the floor, 3 boards and 4 assists. Daniel Mullings added 1, while Junior Cadougan, Kyle Wiltjer and Sim Bhullar were scoreless. Canada hit 21-65 (.320) overall, 15-41 (.370) from the floor, 6-24 from the arc and 23-27 (.850) from the line, while garnering 40 boards, including 17 on the offensive glass, 11 assists, 13 turnovers, 6 steals, 2 blocks and 18 fouls.