| FINAL STANDINGS 1. Serbia 2. United States 3. France 4. Brazil 5. Australia 6. Argentina 7. Turkey 8. Spain 9. Lithuania 10. CANADA 11. Korea 12. China 13. Nigeria 14. Lebanon 15. Mali 16. Puerto Rico | CANADIANS Keaton Cole (Toronto, Ont.) Cory Joseph (Pickering, Ont.) Chretien Lukusa (Toronto, Ont.) Devoe Joseph (Pickering, Ont.) Alwayne Bigby (Toronto, Ont.) Jonathan House (Guelph, Ont.) Boris Bakovic (Toronto, Ont.) Scott Brittain (Toronto, Ont.) Kai Williams (Regina, Sask.) Maurice Walker (Toronto, Ont.) Zach Nagtzaam (Cambridge, Ont.) Max Zuyderhoff-Craig (Montreal, Que.) Greg Francis – coach Craig Beaucamp – assistant Roy Rana – assistant Dean McCord – manager Minh Nguyen – therapist |
| POOL A | FRA | BRA | LIT | LEB | Record | ||||
| France | —– | 98-73 | 95-82 | 100-58 | (3-0) | ||||
| Brazil | 73-98 | —– | 81-75 | 83-67 | (2-1) | ||||
| Lithuania | 92-85 | 75-81 | —– | 105-69 | (1-2) | ||||
| Lebanon | 58-100 | 67-83 | 69-105 | —– | (0-3) | ||||
| POOL B | USA | SER | CHN | MAL | Record | ||||
| United States | —– | 82-78 | 103-77 | 118-56 | (3-0) | ||||
| Serbia | 78-82 | —– | 78-61 | 70-47 | (2-1) | ||||
| China | 77-103 | 61-78 | —– | 59-46 | (1-2) | ||||
| Mali | 56-118 | 47-70 | 46-59 | —– | (0-3) | ||||
| POOL C | AUS | TUR | CAN | NIG | Record | ||||
| Australia | —– | 77-65 | 81-70 | 77-73 | (3-0) | ||||
| Turkey | 65-77 | —– | 81-58 | 91-82 | (2-1) | ||||
| Canada | 70-81 | 58-81 | —– | 82-60 | (1-2) | ||||
| Nigeria | 73-77 | 82-91 | 60-82 | —– | (0-3) | ||||
| POOL D | SPN | ARG | KOR | PUR | Record | ||||
| Spain | —– | 88-68 | 91-89 | 97-80 | (3-0) | ||||
| Argentina | 68-88 | —– | 91-85 | 112-72 | (2-1) | ||||
| Korea | 89-91 | 85-91 | —– | 98-94 | (1-2) | ||||
| Puerto Rico | 80-97 | 72-112 | 94-98 | —– | (0-3) | ||||
| MEDALS E | USA | SER | FRA | BRZ | LIT | CHN | Record | ||
| United States | —– | 82-78 | 87-82 | 104-65 | 90-81 | 103-77 | (5-0) | ||
| Serbia | 78-82 | —– | 79-62 | 87-75 | 89-76 | 78-61 | (4-1) | ||
| France | 82-87 | 62-79 | —– | 98-73 | 95-82 | 106-57 | (3-2) | ||
| Brazil | 65-104 | 75-87 | 73-98 | —– | 81-75 | 89-77 | (2-3) | ||
| Lithuania | 81-90 | 76-89 | 82-95 | 75-81 | —– | 85-66 | (1-4) | ||
| China | 77-103 | 61-78 | 57-106 | 77-89 | 66-85 | —– | (0-5) | ||
| MEDALS F | AUS | SPN | TUR | ARG | CAN | KOR | Record | ||
| Australia | —– | 86-84 | 77-65 | 79-78 | 81-70 | 135-79 | (5-0) | ||
| Spain | 84-86 | —– | 56-59 | 88-68 | 83-69 | 97-80 | (3-2) | ||
| Turkey | 65-77 | 59-56 | —– | 59-68 | 81-58 | 96-104 | (2-3) | ||
| Argentina | 78-79 | 68-88 | 68-59 | —– | 82-87 | 91-85 | (3-2) | ||
| Canada | 70-81 | 69-83 | 58-81 | 87-82 | —– | 99-83 | (2-3) | ||
| Korea | 79-135 | 80-97 | 104-96 | 85-91 | 83-99 | —– | (1-4) | ||
| QFs | United States 112 Argentina 86 | |
| QFs | Brazil 73 Australia 72 | |
| QFs | Serbia 94 Turkey 56 | |
| QFs | France 100 Spain 83 | |
| 13-16th | Lebanon 76 Mali 56 | |
| 13-16th | Nigeria 97 Puerto Rico 77 | |
| 9-12th | Lithuania 127 Korea 74 | |
| 9-12th | Canada 94 China 90 | |
| 5-8th | Argentina 78 Spain 75 | |
| 5-8th | Australia 82 Turkey 67 | |
| Semi | Serbia 89 Brazil 74 | |
| Semi | United States 78 France 75 | |
| 15th | Mali 89 Puerto Rico 81 | |
| 13th | Nigeria 82 Lebanon 65 | |
| 11th | Korea 91 China 75 | |
| 9th | Lithuania 86 Canada 75 | |
| 7th | Turkey 80 Spain 69 | |
| 5th | Australia 82 Argentina 59 | |
| Bronze | France 75 Brazil 67 | |
| Final | Serbia 74 United States 69 | |
In their opener, Canada whacked Nigeria 82-60. Nigeria took a 25-19 lead early in the second quarter but Canada rallied to knot the score at 35 at the half and pulled away in the third quarter by building a 61-48 edge. With the score tied at half-time, Canada went small and wore out the bigger, taller Nigerians with a strong second half surge defensively creating turnovers and offensively making the majority of their open shots in transition and off their set offense. With 6’8” co-captain Scott Brittain limited to 15 minutes because of foul trouble, 6’7” Boris Bakovic came off the bench with 15 points on 6-7 shooting while another tall wing, 6’6” Jon House also added 15 on 3-8 shooting from 3. As a team, Canada shot a blistering 12-26 from beyond the arc for the game and did a great job defensively holding the Nigerians to only 24% shooting from the floor. Nigeria stayed in the game on the offensive glass, grabbing 24 “o” boards but in the end, Canada’s great team “d” which created 21 Nigerian turnovers, solid outside shooting and a superior performance from Devoe Joseph allowed Canada to rule the day. Devoe Joseph scored 33 on 13-25 from the field, 7-15 from the floor, 6-10 from the arc, 1-1 from the line and 5 boards. Jonathan House added 15 on 5-12 from the field, 3-8 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 4 boards and 3 steals. Boris Bakovic notched 15 on 6-7 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc and 6 boards. Kai Williams scored 11 on 3-6 from the field, 1-2 from the arc, 2-4 from the line and 6 boards. Keaton Cole notched 4 on 1-2 from the arc and 4 assists. Alwayne Bigby added 4 on 2-3 from the field and 5 boards, while Cory Joseph, Chretien Lukusa, Zach Nagtzaam, Scott Brittain, Maurice Walker and Max Zuyderhoff-Craig were scoreless. Canada shot 32-70 (.457) from the field, 20-44 (.455) from the floor, 12-26 (.462) from the arc and 6-12 from the line, while garnering 43 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 16 assists, 13 fouls, 15 turnovers, 7 steals and 3 blocks. Emmanuel Negedu paced Nigeria with 16 on 6-9 from the field, 4-6 from the line and 14 boards. Ibrahim Adamu Yusuf added 11 on 5-6 from the field and 3 steals. Abel Baraya notched 7, Solomon Alabi 6, Michael Ohiero 5, Daniel Daudu 5, Mohammed Bukar 4, Nosa Omorogbe 2, Dele Coker 2 and Joseph Katuka 2, while Ayodeji Egbeyemi and George Ehiagwina were scoreless. Nigeria shot 23-80 (.287) from the field, 19-53 (.358) from the floor, 4-27 (.148) from the arc and 10-16 (.625) from the line, while garnering 53 boards, including 23 on the offensive glass, 14 assists, 16 fouls, 21 turnovers, 9 steals and 7 blocks.
Canada’s record was evened at (1-1) after being clocked 81-58 by Turkey. 6-7 Can Ozcan and 6-6 Ogun Sevinc led an onslaught from the perimeter as Turkey built first half leads as large as 18 and coasted. Canada was plagued by poor shooting including a 1-10 start from beyond the arc in the first half plus 11 first-half turnovers and simply could not find their way back in the second half. U of Texas bound point guard Dogus Balbay did a masterful job of dictating the tempo. Devoe Joseph was ineffective a night he’d scored 33. With Canada leading 4-2 early, Ozcan’s long trey started the Turkish side on a 16-3 run, allowing Turkey to grab a 23-11 lead after one quarter. Canada started to settle for treys that wouldn’t fall, allowing easy transition and open looks for Turkey and when Ozcan made a transition lay-up, Turkey led 36-18. Canada’s Boris Bakovic then delivered a personal 5-0 run part of his team-high 10 first-half points to bring the Canadians back to within 14 at 37-23 but that was as close as Canada would get as Turkey finished the half on a 5-1 including a late dunk by Sevinc in transition. Turkey put the game away for all intents and purposes with an 8-0 run off the start of the second half, capped by Ozcan’s third 3 of the game off the 8th assist by the creative Balbay to lead 52-26 with only 6 minutes gone in the third quarter. Ogun Sevinc paced Turkey with 15 on 6-12 from the floor and 3-8 from the arc. Can Ozcan added 15 on 5-10 from the arc and 6 boards. Mesut Kadir Cipa scored 14 on 5-11 from the floor and 9 boards. Eyup Aydogan added 8, Deniz Tunca 8, Kerem Ozcan 7, Ismet Hacioglu 7, Dogus Balbay 5 and Mehmet Azmi Turgut 2, while Altay Ozurganci, Alican Kocabalkan and Burak Selen were scoreless. Turkey shot 29-62 (.468) from the field, 18-33 (.545) from the floor, 11-29 (.379) from the arc and 12-20 (.600) from the line, while garnering 36 boards, including 8 on the offensive glass, 19 assists, 25 fouls, 21 turnovers, 10 steals and 2 blocks. Boris Bakovic paced Canada with 14 on 4-7 from the field, 6-7 from the line and 10 boards. Devoe Joseph added 8 on 2-11 from the field, 1-6 from the arc, 3-4 from the line and 7 boards. Cory Joseph notched 8 on 3-3 from the floor and 2-2 from the arc. Chretien Lukusa scored 6, Jonathan House 5, Scott Brittain 4, Keaton Cole 4, Kai Williams 4, Alwayne Bigby 3 and Zach Nagtzaam 2 while Maurice Walker and Max Zuyderhoff-Craig were scoreless. Canada shot 16-61 (.262) from the floor, 11-40 (.275) from the field, 5-21 (.238) from the arc and 21-25 (.840) from the line, while garnering 36 boards, including 11 on the offensive glass, 6 assists, 20 fouls, 19 turnovers, 7 steals and 2 blocks.
Canada fell to (1-2) and finished in third place in its pool after being dumped 81-70 by Australia. Andrew Ogilvy dominated inside on both ends with 26 points, 18 rebounds and 4 blocks, going 11 for 11 from the field as Australia held off a late Canada rally. Canada had no answers for the polished inside play of Ogilvy, who should be a force in the SEC next season as a freshman at Vanderbilt and is already being touted for either the 2008 or 2009 NBA draft. Ogilvy was at his best early in the second half during an 8-2 Aussie run, scoring 6 points including his second dunk of the game and adding a blocked shot that led to a fast break layup by 6’0” Patrick Mills, who is headed to St. Mary’s (CA), giving Australia a 55-39 lead. But 6’4” Alwayne Bigby made a steal that led to a score by Devoe Joseph and 6’10” Maurice Walker came alive with some putbacks to keep Canada close. Nevertheless, Canada trailed by 15 after 3 quarters. However, the Canadians had one run left as 6’7” Boris Bakovic came alive, scoring 6 points in the fourth quarter to bring Canada back to within 7 at 75-68 with about 4 minutes remaining but Devoe Joseph missed a 3 and then turned it over, allowing the Aussies to score the next 4 points and turn away the Canadians. In the first half, Canada once again started their relatively small, quick lineup of Devoe Joseph, Jonathan House, Alwayne Bigby, Boris Bakovic and Scott Brittain and fell behind by 13 early at 22-9 as the bigger, stronger Australian’s took advantage inside. Australia jumped out to an 8-2 lead by pounding the ball inside and attacking the offensive glass, highlighted by a pair of dunks by Santa Clara-bound 6’7” Ben Dowdell. The Aussie’s continued their assault in the paint and when highly-touted 6’10” Andrew Ogilvy slammed home another, Canada trailed by 8 at 15-7. It was 22-9 for an “on fire” Australian side before 6’6” House broke a 12-4 run with 4 straight points. But then Devoe went to work and when the slick guard from Pickering knocked in back-to-back 3’s Canada was back to within one at 36-35. But the Aussies went off on an 8-0 run to push the lead back up and a Patrick Mills 3 gave Australia a 47-37 halftime lead in a half when Canada was out-rebounded 26-12 including giving up 9 offensive boards. Andrew Ogilvy paced Australia with 26 on 1-11 from the field, 4-8 from the line, 18 boards, 2 assists and 4 blocks. Pat Mills added 11 on 5-13 from the floor and 1-4 from the arc. Ben Louis scored 10 on 4-5 from the floor. Shannon Seebohm notched 10 on 5-9 from the floor and 4 boards. Daniel Johnson added 6, Ben Dowdell 6, Nate Tomlinson 5, Daniel Jackson 4 and Cameron Gliddon 3, while Chris Goulding, Kevin Probert and Ben Smith were scoreless. Australia shot 34-66 (.515) from the field, 30-47 (.638) from the field, 4-19 (.211) from the arc and 9-15 (.600) from the line, while garnering 41 boards, including 12 on the offensive glass, 17 assists, 16 fouls, 12 turnovers, 11 steals and 4 blocks. Devoe Joseph paced Canada with 31 on 13-21 from the floor, 8-12 from the field, 5-9 from the arc and 5 boards. Jonathan House added 12 on 5-14 from the floor, 2-5 from the line and 4 boards. Boris Bakovic scored 8 on 4-9 from the floor and 6 boards. Kai Williams notched 7 on 2-6 from the floor. Maurice Walker added 7 on 3-10 from the floor and 9 boards. Cory Joseph added 3 and Scott Brittain 2, while Keaton Cole, Chretien Lukusa, Alwayne Bigby, Zach Nagtzaam and Max Zuyderhoff-Craig were scoreless. Canada shot 29-70 (.414) from the field, 21-48 (.438) from the field, 8-22 (.364) from the arc and 4-9 (.444) from the line, while garnering 33 boards, including 16 on the offensive glass, 8 assists, 16 fouls, 15 turnovers, 10 steals and 3 blocks.
Canada finished (1-2) in pool play and advanced to medals pool F.
In the first medals pool match, Canada was clocked 83-69 by Spain, who led 21-16, 41-34 and 65-54 at the quarters. Scott Brittain’s early jump-shot gave Canada a 2-0 lead in the opening seconds but soon after that Forcada’s three-pointer put Spain in the ascendancy and they never relinquished the lead. The Spaniards stretched away to lead 21-16 at the end of the first quarter and then again to hold a 41-34 advantage at half-time. Canada could not find a way back into the game. Spain scored the first 13 points of the second half, breaking open a tight game and later survived a solid Canadian run to remain undefeated. Canada had trouble with Spain’s big guys as 6’9” Javier Vega and 6’9” Victor Claver had their way with Canada’s smaller lineup. Canada did a stellar job on Spain’s guards as the point guard tandem of highly-touted 6’2” Quim Colom and 6’3” Richard Nguema combined for only 6 points and 6 turnovers with Canada forcing 23 turnovers in all. But Spain’s bigs and their combination of inside-outside talent were too much for Canada to overcome. With Spain up 59-38 with 5 minutes remaining in the third quarter after an 18-4 run, the Canadians quickly got back in the game by forcing turnovers and after a personal 8-2 run by Williams, Canada creeped back to within 9 at 63-54 but on the final possession of the quarter, the Spaniards worked the ball around to Nguema who made no mistake at the buzzer to extend Spain’s lead back to 11. Canada was able to get it back to single digits on several occasions but never close than 8. Canada was within 3 at 18-16 when Claver hit a long three on the final possession of the first quarter and had it to 5 at 39-34 after a Williams jumper but again Spain hit a late shot on the quarter’s final possession to take a 7-point lead into halftime. Xavi Forcada paced Spain with 18 on 3-4 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 6-8 from the line, 9 boards and 3 assists. Javier Vega added 16 on 6-8 from the floor and 8 boards. Victor Claver notched 15 on 3-4 from the floor, 3-3 from the arc and 4 boards. Antonio Pantin scored 10 on 5-8 from the floor and 4 boards. Marc Rubio added 7, David Marina 7, Quim Colom 4, Juan Alberto Aguilar 3, Richard Nguema 2 and Jose Martinez 1 while Juan Cabot and Nacho Gonzales were scoreless. Spain shot 23-35 (.657) from the floor, 7-16 (.438) from the arc and 16-31 (.516) from the line, while garnering 40 boards, including 7 on the offensive glass, 12 assists, 18 fouls, 23 turnovers, 6 steals and 3 blocks. Devoe Joseph paced Canada with 21 on 5-14 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc, 5-5 from the line and 5 boards. Kai Williams added 21 on 3-6 from the floor, 4-5 from the arc, 3-6 from the line and 5 boards. Jonathan House added 10 on 3-8 from the floor and 1-3 from the arc. Scott Brittain notched 6 on 3-8 from the floor and 8 boards. Max Zuyderhoff-Craig added 4, Alwayne Bigby 3, Boris Bakovic 2 and Maurice Walker 2, while Keaton Cole, Cory Joseph, Chretien Lukusa and Zach Nagtzaam were scoreless. Canada shot 19-52 (.365) from the floor, 7-19 (.368) from the arc and 10-18 (.556) from the line, while garnering 31 boards, including 13 on the offensive glass, 7 assists, 26 fouls, 13 turnovers, 7 steals and 1 block.
Canada defeated Korea 99-83. Neither team was able to open up a significant gap as the advantage in the match swung from one side to another. The Canadians had the edge after one quarter but failed to capitalize on their dominance and were pegged back to 23-23 early in the second. The two sides then traded points until the midway stage, neither able to build a lead of more than three points, to leave the score 48-45 in Korea’s favour going into the third period. Korea then found their scoring touch, and Minseob Kim hit two from the arc and sunk a jump shot to give his side a nine-point lead, but again they were hauled in as Kai Williams bettered Minseob’s feats to bring Canada’s score back level at 63-63. Canada found an extra gear in the final quarter. Inspired by Williams, who poured in 11 points in the last 10 minutes, they out-scored their opponents 29-16 to take a deceptively big win from what had been a tight game. Canada jumped out to an early 17-8 as Walker scored 4 straight points inside on a tip-in and layup and later 6’5” Alwayne Bigby had 4 consecutive points with the Canadians dominating inside and it appeared the route was on. But Korea went on a 7-0 run of their own and the teams basically traded baskets until a late 3 gave the Koreans a 45-42 halftime lead. Korea then began the second half on an 8-3 run but then Williams led the game-turning sequence with a dunk and a layup. Still, Canada led only 70-67 after 3 when a late Korea three got them back. But Canada scored the first 5 points of the fourth quarter and 6’7” Boris Bakovic slammed home a feed from 6’1” Corey Joseph to cap another 13-2 run to give Canada a 14-point lead with 3 minutes remaining. Kai Williams paced Canada with 27 on 11-14 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 2-3 from the line and 12 boards. Devoe Joseph added 16 on 3-9 from the floor, 2-11 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 7 boards and 3 assists. Jonathan House scored 10 on 1-5 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 6 boards. Maurice Walker scored 9 on 3-5 from the floor and 3 boards. Max Zuyderhoff-Craig scored 9 on 4-6 from the floor and 6 boards. Cory Joseph added 8 on 5-8 from the line and 7 boards. Boris Bakovic scored 8 on 4-5 from the floor and 7 boards. Scott Brittain added 6, Alwayne Bigby 4 and Keaton Cole 2, while Chretien Lukusa and Zach Nagtzaam were scoreless. Canada shot 30-57 (.526) from the floor, 7-23 (.304) from the arc and 18-26 (.692) from the line, while garnering 54 boards, including 24 on the offensive glass, 17 assists, 18 fouls, 17 turnovers, 6 steals and 3 blocks. Minsoeb Kim paced Korea with 22 on 3-7 from the floor, 5-14 from the arc and 5 boards. Seung Ho Yoo added 17 on 8-11 from the floor. Yoomin Park notched 13 on 2-4 from the floor, 3-9 from the arc, 7 boards and 4 assists. Kihun Byun added 6, Changyoung Jung 6, Hyeonho Kim 6, Yoongwoong Kwon 5, Sunhyung Kim 5 and Nuri Ham 3, while Seung Wong Kim, Minwook Kim and Jin Soo Kim were scoreless. Korea shot 19-36 (.528) from the floor, 13-42 (.310) from the arc and 6-12 from the line, while garnering 34 boards, including 14 on the offensive glass, 15 assists, 26 fouls, 14 turnovers, 5 steals and 1 block.
Canada edged Argentina 87-82. The score was knotted at 24 after one quarter. Canada led 45-37 at the half and 58-54 after three quarters. The first quarter started in blistering fashion with both sides focusing their attentions on attack rather than defence. Yet there was nothing to separate the two teams as the opening period ended 24-24 thanks to eight-point hauls from Argentinian pair De Los Santos and Federico Aguerre and Canada’s Boris Bakovic. Greg Francis’ outfit quickly learnt from their mistakes from the opening period and tightened their defence to race into a 38-28 lead midway through the second quarter. And Canada managed to sustain the advantage all the way until the break to go into the half-time interval eight points clear at 45-37. The deficit remained intact as the third period wore on, yet an impressive last-minute spell from Aguerre reduced their lead to just four points going into the final period. However, it proved to be sufficient as Canada withstood a barrage of Argentinian pressure to win the encounter by a five-point margin. Canada lost the tie breaker (margin points for and points against) and fell to the 9-12th consolations. Canada did not trail after the first quarter in the game and withstood two late Argentinian runs as Williams again was a monster at both ends, scoring Canada’s first 7 points of the second half as Canada grabbed a 52-43 lead and then helping seal the game on the foul line and with a key block with under 3 minutes remaining. Argentina made the game interesting late, getting the game back 2 with 1:53 remaining on back-to-back 3’s by 6’0” Nicolas De Los Santos but 6’2” Devoe Joseph who had turned the ball over on 2 consecutive possessions allowing Argentina back in the game, knocked down a huge three on the next possession and Canada held on from there. Kai Williams paced Canada with 25 on 8-13 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 6-9 from the line and 11 boards. Boris Bakovic added 17 on 7-12 from the floor, 3-3 from the line, 13 boards and 2 assists. Devoe Joseph scored 14 on 4-10 from the arc and 5 boards. Scott Brittain notched 10 on 3-4 from the floor, 4-5 from the line and 5 boards. Jonathan House scored 8 on 2-7 from the arc and 6 boards. Cory Joseph scored 7 on 3-3 from the floor and 4 boards. Alwayne Bigby added 6, while Keaton Cole, Chretien Lukusa, Zach Nagtzaam, Maurice Walker and Max Zuyderhoff-Craig were scoreless. Canada shot 23-42 (.548) from the floor, 8-25 (.320) from the arc and 17-27 (.630) from the line, while garnering 45 boards, including 12 on the offensive glass, 13 assists, 23 fouls, 19 turnovers, 4 steals and 3 blocks. Nicolas De Los Santos paced Argentina with 24 on 6-16 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 6-8 from the line and 2 assists. Sebastian Ernesto Vega added 17 on 8-10 from the floor, 1-5 from the line and 10 boards. Gustavo Nicolas Aguirre added 16 on 6-8 from the floor, 4-6 from the line and 3 boards. Federico Matias Aguerre notched 11 on 5-9 from the floor and 6 boards. Diego Gerbaudo added 6, Sebastian Uranga 4, Facundo Pinero 3 and Juan Sebastian Morales 1, while Enzo Gabriel Ruiz, Pablo Martin Orlietti Chera, Leandro Ivan Cecchi and Jonathan Ezequiel Machuca were scoreless. Argentina shot 27-49 (.551) from the floor, 4-23 (.174) from the arc and 16-28 (.571) from the line, while garnering 30 boards, including 12 on the offensive glass, 12 assists, 27 fouls, 7 turnovers, 13 steals and 3 blocks.
In the 9-12th consolations,
Canada defeated China 94-90, after leading 21-19, 38-35 and 56-52 at the
quarters. Boris Bakovic’s putback with 55 seconds remaining in overtime gave
Canada the lead for good and then Canada survived a 4-6 effort at the line late
that forced them to stop a late 3-point attempt to pull out the win. After
controlling the game for the first 35 minutes of regulation, Canada found
themselves trailed by 4 with 2:40 remaining in the extra frame, but key players
stepped up when it mattered and Canada prevailed. Bakovic and 6’2” Devoe Joseph
keyed Canada’s effort late in the fourth quarter and in the overtime as Canada,
up comfortably early in the fourth quarter, had to fight their way back by
scoring the final 6 points of regulation to force overtime. Joseph’s jumper
with 22 seconds remaining in regulation tied the game and then his jumper at
the buzzer missed, forcing the overtime tied at 78. China then scored the first
5 points of overtime, but Bakovic, Joseph and 6’8” Scott Brittain each had big
hoops to bring Canada back, setting up Bakovic’s game-deciding putback. Canada
jumped out to an early 8-point lead and maintained it until a late China 3
brought the game back to 38-35 by halftime. Canada led 60-52 late in the third
quarter and then 66-61 with 5:33 left before the Chinese took off on a 10-0
run. But Devoe Joseph had 5 straight points; still Canada had to score the last
6 points of regulation just to tie. Devoe Joseph paced Canada with 29 on 6-18
from the floor, 4-13 from the arc, 5-10 from the line, 6 boards, 8 assists and
3 steals. Boris Bakovic notched 20 on 9-14 from the floor, 2-7 from the line, 8
boards and 3 steals. Alwayne Bigby scored 11 on 3-7 from the floor, 1-1 from
the arc and 2-6 from the line. Scott Brittain scored 11 on 4-11 from the floor,
3-4 from the line and 10 boards. Chretien Lukusa scored 7, Kai Williams 5,
Jonathan House 4, Zach Nagtzaam 4, Max Zuyderhoff-Craig 2 and Cory Joseph 1,
while Keaton Cole and Maurice Walker were scoreless. Canada shot 30-70 (.429)
from the floor, 7-20 (.350) from the arc and 13-30 (.433) from the line, while
garnering 43 boards, including 18 on the offensive glass, 15 assists, 26 fouls,
14 turnovers, 12 steals and 1 block. Zhichao Ba paced China with 21 on 9-13
from the floor, 1-5 from the arc and 6 boards. Yong Xu notched 19 on 5-8 from
the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 3-6 from the line, 5 boards and 2 blocks. Qin Yang
notched 15 on 4-10 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc and 6 boards. Xiaoxu Li
scored 15 on 4-12 from the floor, 7-11 from the line and 13 boards. Zheng Wang
added 9, Wei Su 8 and Delehei 3, while Xu Xu, Aoke Gu, Bo Zhang, Jingyu Li and Yuchen
Tian were scoreless. China shot 28-54 (.519) from the floor, 6-18 from the arc
and 16-33 (.485) from the line, while garnering 48 boards, including 12 on the
offensive glass, 11 assists, 24 fouls, 20 turnovers, 7 steals and 5 blocks.
In the ninth-place playoff,
Lithuania clipped Canada 86-75 after leading 21-16, 45-40 and 62-60 at the
quarters. 6’4” Zyg Janavicius stifled a late Canadian comeback with a big 3 and
followed it with a driving layup with under 2 minutes to play as Lithuania
pulled out the win. Janavicius, one of the stars of the recent Euro league
junior final four and already on the radar of several NBA scouts, broke a late
7-0 Canada run that had brought the game back to 3 at 74-71 with over 3 minutes
remaining. But the slick wing knocked in a long 3 and then finished a lay-in to
give the Lithuanians space and they coasted to the victory from there. Lithuania
took a 56-48 lead at the half but Canada’s Devoe Joseph continued his red-hot
shooting and after a long 3 for his 29th point of the game, Canada came to
within 3 after the 7-0 run. But Janavicius sealed things for Lithuania. Martynas
Gecevicius paced Lithuania with 23 on 4-4 from the floor, 5-10 from the arc and
3 boards. Zygimantas Janavicius scored 18 on 6-10 from the floor, 2-6 from the
arc and 7 assists. Pranas Skurdauskas notched 11 on 4-5 from the floor, 3-4 from
the line and 6 boards. Rokas Grinius scored 7 on 3-4 from the floor and 10
boards. Deividas Gailius added 4, Lukas Brazdauskis 6, Darius Gvezdauskas 5 and
Vaidas Cepukaitis 4, while nabbing 8 boards. Paulius Kleiza scored 3 and Marius
Valukonis 2, while Aurimas Birgelis and Paulius Beliavicius were scoreless.
Lithuania hit 24-37 (.649) from the floor, 10-27 (.370) from the arc and 8-16
from the line, while garnering 41 boards, including 15 on the offensive glass,
19 assists, 20 fouls, 15 turnovers and 2 steals. Devoe Joseph paced Canada with
29 on 8-15 from the floor, 3-4 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 6 boards, 3
assists and 3 steals. Kai Williams added 12 on 2-5 from the floor, 2-3 from the
arc and 2-2 from the line. Scott Brittain notched 12 on 5-12 from the floor, 2-2
from the line and 7 boards. Jonathan House notched 9 on 3-6 from the floor and
3-4 from the line. Boris Bakovic scored 5 on 2-9 from the floor and 5 boards.
Max Zuyderhoff-Craig added 4, Alwayne Bigby 2 and Zach Nagtzaam 2, while Keaton
Cole, Cory Joseph, Chretien Lukusa and Maurice Walker were scoreless. Canada
shot 23-57 (.404) from the floor, 5-9 (.556) from the arc and 14-15 (.933) from
the line, while garnering 23 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 7
assists, 15 fouls, 6 turnovers, 7 steals and 4 blocks.