Canada is going to the FIBA World Cup.
Kassius Robertson’s 16-point performance helped Canada’s men’s basketball team beat Venezuela 94-56 on Thursday to clinch a spot in next summer’s major international tournament.
The win improved Canada’s record to 9-0 in the Americas Zone standings. The Venezuelans fall to 7-2.
Owen Klassen had 11 points and 10 rebounds for Canada (9-0), while Kenny Chery had 12 points and six assists.
Canada absolutely dominated Venezuela in the cup, outscoring the visitors 54-26. The Venezuelans were unable to get offensive boards to stretch possessions, scoring just five second-chance points on the night.
Jhornan Zamora led Venezuela (7-2) with 14 points and three rebounds.
Canada came out strong in the first quarter and pressured the Venezuelans, who just got off a plane a couple of hours before the game. The start time has been delayed by 25 minutes due to the late arrival of the Venezuelan team.
With Canada putting a lot of pressure on the ball, and often double-teaming the player on the dribble, the Venezuelans missed their first six shots. Of his first eight attempts, three were air balls. It took almost four minutes for the Venezuelans to hit a shot, a three-pointer from Zamora.
A high block by Klassen, which stuffed a layup attempt by Windi Graterol, brought the Edmonton crowd to its feet. Canada finished the first quarter up 25-10.
Venezuela went on a nine-point run in the second quarter to cut the deficit to 10 points, but that was as close as they got.
In the second trimester. Klassen had the highlight basket of the first half, finishing with an alley-oop pass from Chery.
Canada increased the lead in the third quarter, outscoring Venezuela 24-11 in the frame. If there was any life left for the visitors, it was taken away by Robertson, who made a three-pointer, was fouled in the act of shooting and iced the four-point game by making the free throw.
In the fourth quarter, with the result well in hand, the visitors’ baskets generated polite applause from the home crowd.
NEXT FOR CANADA: Panama (2-6) will play Canada in Edmonton on Sunday.
NOTES: Canada is ranked No. 15 in men’s basketball by FIBA. Venezuela is 17th. … At 9-0, Canada is the only undefeated team of the 12 teams remaining in two Americas qualifiers…. In FIBA, teams get two points for a win, but one point for a loss. The only way to get nothing out of a game is by losing… Of the 12 teams qualified for the Americas, Canada has the most points, with 914 in nine games. Canada is the only team averaging over 100 points per game.