Team Canada has already punched its ticket to the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 in China, but they still have two more games to play in the Americas Qualifiers.
Both games will be played this weekend in front of what is expected to be a boisterous crowd in St. John's New Foundland. The Canadians will take on Chile on Feb. 21 and will close out the Qualifiers against Venezuela on Feb. 24.
"Looking forward to finishing our windows process strong," head coach Roy Rana said via press release. "Honoured that our group continues to make an incredible sacrifice to represent our country in international competition.
"The windows group of athletes has been the backbone and foundation of our qualification into the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019. I hope we celebrate and show our appreciation for them in St. John's."
Canada defeated Chile back in September in Valdivia Chile 84-61. NBA Champion and Montreal's own Joel Anthony led the way with 17 points, five rebounds and three blocks in the win. The Canadians will look to make it two in a row against the Chileans.
Venezuela, a tough and scrappy squad, defeated Canada in November 84-76. With both Venezuela and Canada having already qualified for the Basketball World Cup, Sunday's game will be all about first place in Group F. Assuming both teams win their first games of the weekend (Canada over Chile and Venezuela over the Dominican Republic) then it could very well come down to the tiebreaker which is determined by point differential. Right now, Canada has a +/- of 203 — Venezuela has a +/- of 93 — advantage Canada unless something drastic happens.
Regardless of the outcomes this weekend, Canada will indeed be headed to the World Cup for the first time in nine years.
The tournament begins on Aug 31. with the Finals played on Sept. 15. China will play host to 32 nations across eight different cities.
The tournament draw is set for March 16.
18 teams have already qualified for the event leaving 14 spots left to fill in the final weekend. You can read about all the remaining scenarios here.
Here's everything you need to know about Canada's road through the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 Americas Qualifiers.
Team Canada's upcoming schedule
| DATE | OPPONENT | TIME | LOCATION |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday, Sept. 13 | Brazil, W, 85-77 | 7:30 PM | Laval, Quebec |
| Monday, Sept. 17 | Chile, W, 84-61 | 8:00 PM | Valdivia, Chile |
| Friday, Nov. 30 | Venezuela, L, 84-76 | 5:15 PM | Caracas, Venezuela |
| Monday, Dec. 3 | Brazil, W, 94-67 | 5:00 PM | Sao Paulo, Brazil |
| Thursday, Feb. 21 | Chile | 5:30 PM | St. John's, NL |
| Sunday, Feb. 24 | Venezuela | 2:30 PM | St. John's, NL |
Who is on Team Canada's roster?
| NAME | POSITION | HEIGHT | HOMETOWN | CURRENT CLUB |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joel Anthony | Center | 6'10" | Montreal, QC | San Lorenzo Basket (Argentina) |
| Aaron Best | Guard | 6'4" | Scarborough, ON | Riesen Ludwigsburg (Germany) |
| Melvin Ejim | Forward | 6'7" | Toronto, ON | Istanbul BBSK (Turkey) |
| Brady Heslip | Guard | 6'2" | Burlington, ON | Fraport Skyliners (Germany) |
| Kaza Kajami-Keane | Guard | 6'2" | Ajax, ON | Landstede Zwolle (Netherlands) |
| Kyle Landry | Center | 6'10" | Calgary, AB | Buducnost (Montenegro) |
| Conor Morgan | Forward | 6'9" | Victoria, BC | Divina Seguros Joventut (Spain) |
| Mychal Mulder | Guard | 6'4" | Windsor, ON | Windy City Bulls (G League) |
| Adika Peter-McNeilly | Guard | 6'3" | Toronto, ON | Mitteldeutscher BC (Germany) |
| Phil Scrubb | Guard | 6'4" | Richmond, BC | Zenit Saint Petersburg (Russia) |
| Thomas Scrubb | Forward | 6'7" | Richmond, BC | Openjobmetis Varese (Italy) |
| Kyle Wiltjer | Forward | 6'10" | Portland, OR | Unicaja Malaga (Spain) |
Americas Qualifiers Standings
| Team | W/L | Points | +/- |
| Argentina* | 9/1 | 19 | 185 |
| USA* | 8/2 | 18 | 188 |
| Uruguay | 6/4 | 16 | -70 |
| Puerto Rico | 6/4 | 16 | 23 |
| Panama | 4/6 | 14 | -38 |
| Mexico | 3/7 | 13 | -56 |
Group F
| Team | W/L | Points | +/- |
| Venezuela* | 9/1 | 19 | 93 |
| Canada* | 8/2 | 18 | 203 |
| Brazil | 7/3 | 17 | 99 |
| Dominican Republic | 6/4 | 16 | 61 |
| Chile | 2/8 | 12 | -116 |
| Virgin Islands | 2/8 | 11 | -132 |
*Qualified to Fiba Basketball World Cup 2019 in China.
How can I watch Canada's Qualifier games?
All of Canada's Qualifier games are available to stream live on DAZN.
