Canada Dominates All Facets of the Game in 103-66 Victory of Panama at FIBA Americas

Team Canada was able to improve to 4-1 in the FIBA Americas tournament with a win over Panama on Sunday. Canada put forth an outstanding effort in all facets of the game, and it showed on the scoreboard. The Canadians were able to put up 103 points while limiting Panama to a mere 66 points.

The offensive star in this one was Oakville, Ontario’s Brady Heslip. Heslip poured in 23 points, going 7-for-13 from three-point range.  Five of these threes came in the first half alone including one that was about five feet behind the line. The combo-guard sparked a huge showing for the bench in this one, which paid dividends in the first half while star Andrew Wiggins was sidelined due to early foul trouble. The bench finished with a massive 44 points which shows how deep these Canadians are.

Newly acquired Philadelphia 76er, Nik Stauskas had a very strong game as well. The 21-year-old added 16, to go with six boards and five dimes in just under 30 minutes of playing time. Andrew Wiggins, despite getting into early foul trouble, was able to bounce back with a strong third quarter. He finished with 12 points in the frame adding to his 17 total. Newly signed Toronto Raptor, Cory Joseph finished with 15PTS, 4REB, and 3AST. Joseph was doing an excellent job of getting into the paint and drawing fouls as he got to the line ten times in this game.

Canada’s defense was adamant, particularly in the first half where they held Panama to just 23 points. They did a fantastic job of forcing the Panama players to take tough shots. As a result, Panama finished the first half going 9-for-37 from the field. They were able to hit 66 by the final buzzer, but this was a result of Canada resting their starters for a large part of the second half. Offensively, Canada did a great job of sharing the basketball. Everyone was looking for their teammates to try to get the best possible shot. Canada finished with a 44% FG%, going 14-for-36 from deep. They also did an excellent job on their free throws, going 23-for-27 from the line. Canada dominated the rebounds in this game. Panama finished with just 28 total rebounds while the Canadians hauled in an outstanding 53 boards.

They young Canadian team, led by coach Jay Triano, played an outstanding team basketball game. Everyone seemed to be on the same page, and it was very pleasant to watch. The all-around performance was capped off with a monstrous slam by Andrew Nicholson with around two minutes remaining in the contest.

Canada’s next test will be against a tough Uruguay squad that will be looking to upset the hot Canadian team. This match will take place on Monday at 6:00 pm Eastern Time.