Canadian men upend 6th-ranked Austria in opener at FIBA 3x3 basketball World Cup
No. 17 Canada faces reigning Olympic silver medallist France on Thursday in Mongolia
Canada's men nearly matched the women with two wins to open the FIBA 3x3 basketball World Cup but ran out of time Tuesday.
However, their lone victory was a big accomplishment, a 22-19 decision over sixth-ranked Austria in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. The 17th-ranked Canadians also lost 22-20 to No. 11 China.
Canada, which secured one of three available World Cup spots on May 25 with a 21-12 handling of Rwanda to cap a 3-0 performance in Azerbaijan, is back at the World Cup seven years following its quarterfinal loss in Manila, Philippines.
On June 12, 2018, the Netherlands scored four points in 80 seconds for an 18-16 victory in a 10-minute contest that included five lead changes. Canada held a 16-15 edge with 73 seconds remaining on the clock.
In Tuesday's game against Austria, neither team held more than a two-point lead until Aaron Rhooms's two-point shot gave Canada an 11-8 advantage.
Grant Audu's two-pointer made it a four-point match at 16-12 with 3:15 left in the 10-minute contest.
WATCH | Full replay coverage of Canada vs. Austria from Mongolia:
With Canada leading 19-14, Austria went on a five-point run to draw even, keyed by a couple of Matthias Linortner free throws.
But Rhooms and Audu put the game out of reach over the final 90 seconds with a single point and two-pointer, respectively.
The six-foot-four Audu, from Toronto, is in his first season with the team. His first major competition was the FIBA 3x3 AmeriCup last December in San Juan, Puerto Rico, where the Canadian program picked up its first-ever medal at the event, defeating Mexico and Dominican Republic for bronze.
Live coverage of the World Cup will be available on CBC Gem and CBCSports.ca through to the medal games on Sunday.
Jerome Desrosiers and Audu shared the Canadian lead with seven points apiece while Alex Johnson had four rebounds. Canada shot 67 per cent from the field (14 of 21) while Austria converted eight of 10 attempts.
The Canadians held several leads against China but found themselves playing catch-up in the second half of the contest.
Back-and-forth contest
When Canada did grab momentum, Dianliang Zhang was there to take it away.
The Canadians went up 13-12 with 3:28 to play when Xingrui Wu converted a two-point to give China the lead. Zhang then made it a two-point game 39 seconds later.
The teams were tied 15-15 when Zhang made two foul shots with 1:56 remaining.
WATCH | Full replay coverage of Canada vs. China:
Canada knotted matters a couple of more times on two-pointers by Desrosiers but ZhiChao Xiang scored the final points with two just 28 seconds from the final buzzer.
Desrosiers had nine points to lead Canada along with a game-high seven rebounds.
Zhang topped all players with 10 points and added four rebounds.
Canada's squad also features Alex "Superman" Johnson, who committed to 3x3 full-time in 2021.
Johnson and Desrosiers were part of the group that placed third at the Olympic qualifying tournament last season, narrowly missing a spot in Paris. Canada's men also missed out on qualifying for the 2021 Olympic tournament in Tokyo.
Sixteen countries from each 20-team tournament will reach the single-elimination knockout stage, with division winners headed directly to the quarterfinals.
The Canadians will complete pool play Thursday against France, the 2024 Olympic silver medallists, at 5:10 a.m. ET, and Puerto Rico (7 a.m.) which placed second at last year's AmeriCup.
