Canada moves to 3-0 in AmeriCup qualifiers, defeating Dominican Republic in Saskatoon

High-flying, confident, dominant.

All the words indispensable to picture a 88-71 triumph for Canada’s elder men’s hoops squad connected Thursday nighttime kicking disconnected the 2nd model of FIBA AmeriCup qualification successful Saskatoon.

“Whenever you get to play successful Canada, for Canada is amazing,” said Team Canada skipper Trae Bell-Haynes. “Being here, determination that I don’t deliberation has gotten Canada hoops games earlier is truly cool. It’s a caller experience, the assemblage was great, the enactment was great.”

Canada was capable to instrumentality down the Dominican Republic astatine SaskTel Centre connected Thursday, moving 1 measurement person towards qualifying for the 2025 FIBA AmeriCup adjacent August successful Nicaragua.

For fans successful attendance similar Ben Koroluk, it was a uncommon accidental to spot planetary hoops successful his ain backyard.

“It’s perfectly electrical to person Canada retired present playing successful Saskatoon,” said Koroluk. “It’s not each time you get to travel retired and enactment your state astatine an planetary event. It’s thing but excitement from me.”

A dense unreality hung implicit Thursday’s crippled however, pursuing the decease of erstwhile Team Canada jock Chad Posthumus owed to complications from country aft suffering from a encephalon aneurysm past week.

All Canadian players wore ‘CP’ patches connected their uniforms, portion a infinitesimal of soundlessness was held pre-game successful honour of the 33-year-old.

“It’s a large happening for our enactment to suffer a idiosyncratic similar that,” said Team Canada caput manager Nathaniel Mitchell. “Obviously, I coached him successful the AmeriCup 2 years ago. So I conscionable privation to marque definite we’re ever sending our thoughts and prayers to his family.”

Posthumus’ decease sent shockwaves passim the full Canadian Elite Basketball League, including the big Saskatchewan Rattlers with whom helium won a title successful the 2019 CEBL season.

“It’s been a truly pugnacious time not going to lie,” said Rattlers president Lee Genier. “Chad was 1 of those radical that you loved truthful much, truly affected myself and it affected everyone from the organization, astir the league and conscionable the sports satellite arsenic well. You conscionable saw an outpouring [of support] and it’s a pugnacious 1 for each of us.”

Trending Now

“I’m hoping he’s looking down connected america close present and watching the game.”

On the tribunal Thursday, the Canadians dominated the overgarment against the Dominican Republic, outscoring the visitors 52-36 implicit the people of the nighttime down debased and helping Canada determination to a 3-0 grounds successful qualifying truthful far.

That included a standout show by large antheral Mfiondu Kabengele, who led the mode with 17 points and 7 rebounds successful the victory.

“Whatever we deficiency successful reps arsenic a team, we made up with togetherness and conscionable a benignant of camaraderie,” said Kabengele. “I’m truly blessed that guys stuck it out, played done mistakes and executed truly well.”

Flanked by a swarm of kids astatine the passageway heading into the locker country astatine halftime, Kabengele besides commented connected what helium hopes young fans volition instrumentality distant from the week.

“If watching america inspires them to get successful the gym, get amended and perchance articulation the squad connected a Canada roster 1 of these days,” said Kabengele. “I consciousness similar america playing games successful Saskatchewan does that.”

Team Canada volition adjacent retired their enactment successful Saskatchewan connected Sunday astatine 2:00 p.m. astatine SaskTel Centre, wherever they volition look to determination to a 4-0 grounds successful qualifying against Mexico.