Canada dominates Bahamas in FIBA Qualifier

The first ever FIBA World Cup qualifier in Halifax saw Canada dominate the Bahamas front of a packed arena.

Canada’s team was made up of mostly players from European leagues to compete in the first of six qualifier games to make it into the 2019 FIBA World Cup in China.

They faced off against the Bahamas in the first game of the tournament which was hosted at the Scotiabank Centre in front of 7,000 fans.

Canada started the game off strong, scoring first and building a lead through a series of three pointers from shooting guards Brady Heslip and Philip Scrubb.

The game also served as a homecoming for Acadia alumni, Owen Klassen, who came off the bench for Halifax midway through the first quarter. Klassen has been playing in Europe where he doesn’t often get have friends and family in the stands.

“It’s really a special opportunity playing especially in our country in front of our own fans,” Klassen said

Klassen hit two foul shots helping his team finish the first quarter with a 21-11 lead.

Canada continued to dominate throughout the second quarter, Heslip led all scorers with 15 points at the half. Canada went to the locker-room leading 45-17 and their strong performance continued in the third quarter, leading 66-38 going into the fourth.

Anthony Bennett, the former number one NBA overall draft pick, was mostly silent throughout the game, but made his presence known to start the fourth quarter with a dunk.

However, the Bahamas weren’t out as they played their best in the fourth quarter, scoring 31 points. Klassen said with the lead so high, Canada wasn’t pushing as hard as they had been earlier on.

“It’s tough to play when you’re up that much,” Klassen said.

He also attributed the Bahamas success to their ability to change their defensive style.

“I think they were a little more aggressive in the second half and I think they kind of switched their defence around,” Klassen said.

“It was a tough quarter for us, but I think we bounced back,” said Scrubb.

However, the late comeback wasn’t enough as Canada took the game 93-69.

Heslip led all scorers with 22 points, while Klassen tallied four points.

This was Klassen’s first opportunity to represent Canada on the senior team, something he said he wouldn’t forget.

“As soon as I got the call I jumped at the opportunity,” he said of hearing he’d made the Canada roster. “I know a ton of guys who didn’t get the opportunity and would kill for this.”

The tournament is scheduled as a two-year qualifying format which includes 80 teams in four FIBA continental zones — Americas, Africa, Asia-Pacific and Europe — who are all competing for one of 31 World Cup qualification spots, China automatically earns a spot as the host. The 16 teams in the Americas region qualifier will compete for seven of those World Cup spots.

Although Canada came away with a big win, they will have little time to rest. The team will travel south immediately where they will play the Dominican Republic on Nov. 27 for the second game in the FIBA Qualifier tournament.