They beat the visitors 95-75 in a win that had its bumps early on, but in the end it was exactly what everyone expected: a team with some elite NBA talent backed by polished pros elsewhere in the lineup is tough for anyone manage. Canada was led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who led all scorers with 32 points and added five rebounds and five assists as the Oklahoma City Thunder star helped his team break open with a 15-point fourth quarter . His cousin Nickeil Alexander-Walker of the Utah Jazz added 17 points, while Kelly Olynyk of the Detroit Pistons added 17 points, 11 rebounds and six assists. Dallas Mavericks big man Dwight Powell contributed nine points on 4-of-5 shooting while adding six rebounds and creating an endless supply of balls for Canada’s guards. The win improved Canada to 5-0 in Group C play in the first stage of the qualifiers. They complete the stage on Monday when they travel to play the Virgin Islands, who are bottom of the group. Whatever the result there – Canada won by 48 without the benefit of its NBA talent when it played in February – Canada is confident of advancing to the second stage and, barring a sudden change of fortune, is in a good position to qualify for the FIBA World Basketball Cup in the Philippines and Japan. But the result was somewhat minor as the game was the first test of the men’s team’s plan to build a 14-man summer core. That plan includes their top talent committing to play for Canada this summer and the next two after that in order to build cohesion on their way to what they hope will be their first Olympic appearance since the 2000 Olympics in Sydney. [brightcove videoID=6308927964112 playerID=JCdte3tMv height=360 width=640] The difference was evident before the ball went up as Canada introduced its starting lineup — featuring four NBAers to the delight of a crowd of about 6,000 at the FirstOntario Center in Hamilton, Ont. No one received more cheer than Gilgeous-Alexander, who played high school basketball in the city before leaving for the United States. “It was so much fun,” said Gilgeous-Alexander, who brought the crowd to its feet early with a lefty dunk, a first-time event for the right-hander, apparently. “Just knowing that all the people that watched me grow up since I was in high school, they were watching me play today. Something I can’t describe and then it went the way I wanted to go in.” Indeed, Canada had more NBA players on the bench watching (not all members of the summer squad were able to play this summer, but as part of their commitment they are expected to participate in training camps and team events) than the Dominican, which no one counted. in their composition. Needless to say, they had no one to match Gilgeous-Alexander, who was as impressive as possible in making his first on-court appearance with the men’s team, a performance that bodes well for the future but also signaled the emerging status of. of the best guards Canada has ever had. “He’s definitely up there with the best of them,” said national team veteran Olynyk, who is in his second decade with the program. “It’s a privilege to play with a guy like that. We’ve had a lot of them go through this program now. He is not alone. He’s fun to play with, fun to watch, fun to watch. I think everyone here got a treat tonight. “His IQ is high. He knows the game, sees the game, is unselfish,” Olynyk continued. He gets the ball down, gets it back, gets his points when he’s there. He really knows how to play in the flow of the game. That’s something that kind of gets lost sometimes. He is very good at it. Obviously, he’s a high-level player, extremely skilled at both ends of the floor. It changes the game, as you saw there in the third quarter. It just changed the game for us.” [brightcove videoID=6308935667112 playerID=JCdte3tMv height=360 width=640] Canada’s talent advantage was evident early on. After a sloppy start for Canada, they got their first split from a misguided DR team with a 7-0 spurt that included an Olynyk layup, a spectacular block on a dunk attempt by Kyle Alexander (European pro with NBA experience ). two free throws by Gilgeous-Alexander and three by Alexander-Walker. Another 3-pointer at the buzzer by Alexander-Walker — who had nine points in the quarter — gave Canada a 21-16 lead at the end of the first quarter. The visitors continued to press and took a 31-30 lead with 5:48 to play in the half and had the game tied at 35-35 with 3:09 to play before Canada finished with an 11-1 run, capped by a tip-in at the buzzer by Gilgeous-Alexander before the teams left for their respective dressing rooms. Canada’s talent advantage began to show even more clearly in the third quarter. First Olynyk and Powell combined on a few low passing plays that led to a dunk by Powell. Gilgeous-Alexander then began doing what he does best in the NBA — using his low dribble and long strides to get the ball into the paint, where he finished or drew fouls. Warmed up enough, he made a triple in transition to extend Canada’s lead to 21 with 2:57 left in the third. Two more 3-pointers from Alexander put Canada up 28 in the final period as Canada led 76-48 to start the fourth quarter. Canada was never seriously threatened after that, and the highlight of the period was when Purdue University’s 7-footer Zach Edey — the only college player named to Canada’s summer core — made his senior men’s team debut, to much fanfare. of the crowd that was directly behind the Toronto-born big man. The 20-year-old got on the board with a pair of free throws for his first points with the senior team.
