Canada displays a resilient edge, rallies late to beat Jamaica 77-72

TORONTO – Challenged with their first battle against adversity, Canada's men's basketball team responded resiliently.

Canada trailed 49-37 at halftime against Jamaica in Saturday's exhibition at Ryerson's Mattamy Athletic Centre. The Canadians could only watch as their opponents hit shot, after shot, after shot, closing out the half shooting 8/11 from three.

Canada was down on the scoreboard but not down on their game plan or their execution.

"I give [Jamaica] a lot of credit, they shot the ball extremely well in the first half," said head coach Jay Triano. "[But] it wasn't like we were falling asleep and missing coverages, those were tough shots."

In the first game against Jamaica, Tristan Thompson and Andrew Nicholson were admittedly still adjusting to the more physical international game. On Saturday, Thompson was noticeably more aggressive around the basket. He scored 16 points on 6/11 shooting and grabbed 10 rebounds. Nicholson had a great start shooting the ball and even though he finished the game 5/17, he was confident and assertive. Overall, there's a sense that progress was made since Thursday's game.

"I didn't sense any frustration today. I think we've got to get a little bit better at finishing in and around the rim but they're getting used to playing with each other. There's a couple times where one guy has [the ball], the other guy is open and we're not quite finding that yet but that will come with time and with practice playing together," said Triano.

Once again, Triano used two five-man lineups throughout the first half. Phil Scrubb replaced Andy Rautins in an otherwise unchanged starting lineup and Myck Kabongo, Devoe Joseph, Kris Joseph, and Joel Anthony received minutes together in a unit that also included Levon Kendall after not playing at all on Thursday.

In the second half, Jamaica began play zone defence prompting Triano to make changes to his rotation. He put Brady Heslip and Andy Rautins on the floor, who both didn't play in the first two quarters, in order to ensure better spacing and beat the zone with outside shooting.

Heslip hit his shots on Thursday night scoring 18 points including 4 three-pointers. It was Rautins' turn on Saturday night. He went 4/6 from the field and 3/5 from three.

With a competition for minutes at small forward and shooting guard, it's paramount for those vying for the available spots to make the most of their playing time. Whoever can find space on the perimeter and hit their open shots will jump to the head of the queue. Having to choose between deserving players isn't fun but it's something the coaching staff understands is a necessary evil as the squad prepares for the 2013 FIBA Americas Championship that starts on August 30th.

"It's hard but it's a lot better than we've had it in the past. Usually it's a training camp of three days, pick a team and travel somewhere," said Triano. We've got the luxury of having another five days here in Toronto to practice and watch the tape and play against each other and find out where we are as a team."

Another positive was Anthony's presence as an interior defender. The veteran centre played a significant role in limiting Jamaica to just 9 points in the fourth quarter and gives Canada additional options in the front court.

"We said coming into these two games that our goals were to be competitive and play against somebody else and see what we can do and also have this be a tryout and we get a chance to evaluate our players and evaluate where we are," said Triano. "I think we've done both. I think we need to get a lot better at what we're doing."

Tough decisions are on the way for Canada but there's certainly optimism to be drawn from this week in Toronto for the short-term and the long-term.