Lithuania needed 30 minutes in order to take the lead for the first time in the game and eventually defeat Canada 70-68. North Americans suffered an unexpected loss against Lebanon but they were a different team today.
Canada took control of the game early thanks to a couple of impressive runs. The score was 7-0 and 15-4 in the first quarter. Lithuanians struggled to find the target while Canadians just couldn’t stop shooting.
Things didn’t improve in the second half for Lithuania. Martynas Gecevicius, Jonas Maciulis, Tomas Delininkaitis and the rest were unable to put the ball in the basket. Meanwhile Canada in addition to scoring difficult shots were also outrebounding their opponents.
The third quarter saw Canadians taking the largest lead of the game 56-39. Jeremy Anderson and Joel Anthony were the main men behind Canada’s successful run. Lithuania woke up late in the third quarter and managed to narrow the gap to just two points.
Tomas Delininkaitis nailed a three-pointer to give his team a one-point lead for the first in the game as the fourth quarter started. Both teams exchanged baskets several times and the score remained very close. Lithuanians were up by four points with less than two minutes left to play. Jeremy Anderson had the chance to win the game for Canada with a three-pointer but the ball bounced of the rim.
Canada will take on France on Tuesday while Lithuania will face Spain.
Score by quarters: 12-20, 21-23, 22-14, 15-11
Lithuania: Linas Kleiza 18, Martynas Pocius 11, Tomas Delininkaitis 11, Jonas Maciulis 8, Mantas Kalnietis 7, Tadas Klimavicius 7, Paulius Jankunas 4, Renaldas Seibutis 2, Simas Jasaitis 2.
Canada: Jeremy Anderson 15, Joel Anthony 12, Denham Brown 11, Levon Kendall 9, Andy Rautins 7, Jermaine Bucknor 5, Jevohn Shepherd 5, Aaron Doornekamp 3, Ryan Bell 1.
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