Brazil achieved a stunning result at the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup by beating Canada 69-65 , in a thrilling match at the Indonesia Arena.
Yago Santos hit key shots in the fourth quarter to help Brazil cruise to victory in the Second Round match and set up an exciting final game for Group L on Sunday.
This victory ensured Brazil’s dominance over Canada in the FIBA Basketball World Cup after extending their winning streak over them to six, although the last time was in 1978.
Turning point: Canada took a comfortable lead, 55-45, in the final seconds of the third quarter before a three-pointer from Lucas Dias cut the deficit to just seven points. That provided a breath of fresh air for Brazil, which finally took the lead with two minutes remaining thanks to a Caboclo shot from the free throw line, 60-59. That’s when Yago Santos took over the game by sinking two consecutive shots to give the underdog a 64-60 lead and didn’t relinquish it until the game was over.
TCL Player of the Game: Santos has some of the best shots, but none of that would have mattered if Bruno Caboclo hadn’t kept Brazil afloat. Caboclo recorded an incredible double-double with 19 points and 13 rebounds. He also added 3 blocks and 2 steals while sinking 7 of 13 shots from the floor.
Meanwhile, Canada was led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander who scored 23 points with Lu Dort who added 17 on his return to action.
The stats don’t lie: Canada looks to have the upper hand in this game, but Brazil has other plans. Gustavo Conti’s squad outscored Canada, 27-13, in the final 10 minutes of the game, including a 3-pointer from Dias in the third quarter. Brazil also dominated possession, 43-37, and did a much better job sharing the ball with 17 assists to Canada’s 10.
Bottom line:
Brazil’s victory made all four teams in Group L have the same 3-1 record. This means that every match on Sunday is a knockout system. Brazil can advance to the Quarter-Finals with a victory over the giant conquering team, Latvia.
Meanwhile, Canada will be looking to survive the onslaught of reigning champions Spain after their unbeaten start ended in dramatic fashion.
Comments: “A very tough game. They came ready to play. We let the game loose. We had it, but we have to give them credit. Now we have to forget for a moment and look to the next game.” – Luguentz Dort, Canada
“Give a lot of credit to Brazil for the win. They played really hard. Defensively, I think we were fine. We had chances, but offensively we weren’t willing to do anything for each other like open up space, move the ball, moving. When you play like that, it’s very difficult to win. Today was an example – 10 assists from 9 turnovers, shot 33 from two-pointers and 27 from three-pointers. We didn’t deserve to win. This is our problem. We haven’t “We’ve never faced something like this, but I believe in our players. We will prepare ourselves to face Spain, and we will be ready for the next match.” – Jordi Fernandez, Canadian head coach
I think we had a very good game. We followed the instructions of our coach. We see their vision and obey instructions. This game wasn’t a high-volume game, and we had to do that to come out and win this game.” – Bruno Caboclo, Brazilian forward
“It was a good game as far as our strategy was concerned. After we did our scouting report, we decided to slow down the tempo of the game. It was a little unusual for us to do that, but the players executed it very well. The win is theirs.” – Gustavo Conti, coach of Brazil
