The competition for the Paris Olympics continues, Group A ushers in a strong dialogue, Canada vs. Australia, the former defeated Greece led by Brother Alphabet in the last game to win the first victory, and the latter easily defeated the old powerhouse Spain, showing super competitiveness, so the victory or defeat of this game is expected to determine the ownership of the top spot in Group A, because the two teams have multiple NBA players, this game can be called an NBA playoff-level confrontation.
At the beginning of the game, the two teams were full of intensity, played very closely, the lead changed hands alternately, Australia blossomed more points to control the situation, helpless to win, the point difference was never opened, 28-26 at the end of the first quarter only 2 points lead.
In the second quarter, the intensity of the physical confrontation between the two teams was further improved, and Dillon was even more entangled and friction with Giddey.
The same was true of the point difference, Australia, as in the first quarter, firmly in control but never able to pull away, Australia led by four points at 49-45 at halftime.
Yibian fought again, Canada found an offensive rhythm under the leadership of Alexander, hitting super difficult goals in a row, on the other hand, Australia's attack was dumb, the 4-point difference was not only quickly filled, but fell behind by double digits, but fortunately at the end of the quarter Australia found its form through a strong attack on the inside, and Canada won 72-70 in the third quarter to lead by 2 points.
Entering the final quarter of the battle, Australia's outside line was completely limited by Canada's Dillon + Dort's two big locks, and the offensive end continued to be sluggish, scoring only 2 points in the half quarter.
Canada relied on the absolute ability of Alexander and Barrett to completely control the situation, and the point difference was stretched to double digits again, but because of the small score system, the two teams fought until the last minute, and finally Canada defeated Australia 93-83 to win two consecutive games.
[Data of both sides]
Canada: Barrett 24 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists, Dillon 16 points, Dort 11 points, Alexander 16 points and 4 rebounds, Powell 7 points and 9 rebounds, Birch 6 points, Murray 5 points and 5 assists, Nembhard 5 points
Australia: Keady 19 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists, Landale 16 points, 12 rebounds and 4 assists, Daniels 10 points and 6 rebounds, Mills 8 points, Exum 15 points, McVeigh 9 points
In this game against strong opponents Australia, Canada showed the strength to win medals, and the offensive and defensive ends were full of highlights.
On the offensive end, Alexander scored 16 points on 8-of-10 shooting, and in the face of Australia's strong physical confrontation and near-perfect defense, Alexander extended his NBA dominance to the international arena, and his mid-range shooting was full of difficulty.
Barrett was 8-of-14 and 3-of-6 from three-point range, not only did he finish a remarkable positional battle, but he also had a full impact on the transition offense, shining with Alexander.
The defensive end of Dillon + Dort's configuration is enviable, successfully locking Mills, the core of Australia's backfield.
Mills made just 2-of-10 shooting, 1-of-5 three-pointers, dished out just one assist, had a whopping four turnovers, and had a game-low plus/minus of -16.
If Murray and Nembhard can find their form in the second team, then this Canada team has every chance of calling the United States Dream Team, and most unfortunately, Wiggins in the front line did not play.
In addition, the Rockets emerged as the biggest winners of the game, with three of the Rockets' big players from both teams putting in impressive performances.
Landale continued his hot form last game, shooting 7-of-10 from the field and finishing with 16 points, 12 rebounds and 4 assists, one of the few absolute strong points in Australia.
Needless to say, Dillon scored 16 points on 5-of-9 shooting, 2-of-3 three-pointers, and 4-of-4 free throws, plus 3 rebounds and 1 assist, with a game-high plus/minus of +11.
In addition to these two players with big contracts, McVeigh, who signed a two-way contract with the Rockets before the start of the Olympics, continued to produce 13 points and 7 rebounds after making his debut 3-of-6 three-point shooting.
Played 14 minutes, shot 3-of-6, 3-of-5 from three-point range, efficiently scored 9 points, 2 rebounds, and made three three-pointers, which are all key points, and is expected to provide the three-point finishing ability that the team needs in the second line of the Rockets.