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Down go the champs: Canada knock out Spain in thriller
JAKARTA (Indonesia) - Canada were up to the task as they successfully knocked off defending champions Spain in their final Second Round matchup at the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023.
Final score: 88-85
SGA (30/4/7), Dillon Brooks (22/5/2), and RJ Barrett (16/5/1) carried Canada in this one. The game could have easily gone the other way or into OT. Spain led for 70% of the time and did everything right in the last 30 seconds. There was a bit of Raptors reunion with Nate Bjorkgren, Sergio Scariolo, and Juancho Hernangómez all on or around the court
Brazil bring down Canada to set up group deciders
JAKARTA (Indonesia) - Brazil pulled off a stunning result at the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 as they defeated Canada 69-65, in a thrilling contest at the Indonesia Arena.
It'll be do or die for all 4 group L teams tomorrow. My team's Canada, and they got outplayed and outcoached by Brazil. Brazil's chemistry and size allowed them to close off the paint, especially when they used zone coverage, to Canada's half-court offence. Their strategy of shooting late on the shot clock to de-fang Canada's transition offence was executed really well. And Brazil penetrated the Canadian defence, and generally got good looks, quite easily. I'm confident Canada's defence and coaching (Jordi should call more timeouts) will be better against Spain, and while Spain can learn a lot about limiting Canada's effectiveness from Brazil, I don't think they'll be able to employ the same strategies as effectively. One last takeaway, while Shai rightly gets a lot of attention, Kelly Olynyk and Dwight Powell are key pieces for this squad to win. Latvia vs Brazil and Spain vs Canada should be great matches! 🥳