The Tall Blacks have suffered a 76-107 loss against a stacked Canada team overnight, in their first friendly game of the SuperCup tournament in Hamburg, Germany.
New Zealand were competitive early, tied 16-all midway through the first quarter before Canada embarked on a 7-0 run; the Kiwis behind by four at the end of the first period following a late Reuben Te Rangi triple. Canada put on a furious offensive display in the second quarter, outscoring New Zealand 39-14 thanks to the efforts of All-NBA First Teamer Shai Gilgeous-Alexander – who racked up nine of his 26 points in the period – with Canada shooting a scorching 14/17 from the floor to take a 67-38 lead heading into the second half.
The Tall Blacks worked hard to reduce the deficit in the third, outscoring Canada 24-18 thanks to a pair of triples from Finn Delany (13 points on the night) and seven from Isaac Fotu (11 points). But Canada were able to close out the win in the final quarter as they held the Kiwis to just 14 points in the fourth; both teams going cold as Canada picked up the 31 point win to advance to the SuperCup final.
New Zealand was led by Delany’s 13 points (3-6 from downtown), Yanni Wetzell with 12, Fotu 11 on 5-6 shooting and Flynn Cameron with 10 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists. Te Rangi added 8 points, Tohi Smith-Milner 7 and Izayah Le’afa’s 6 points. The Kiwis shot 42% from the field – including 11-27 from beyond the arc at a 40% clip – and outrebounded their opponents 33-32, but were hampered by 26 turnovers against the fierce Canada defence.
Canada was paced by 26 points and 6 steals from Gilgeous-Alexander – regarded as one of the best scorers on the planet – on 9/12 shooting, while Kelly Olynyk and Nickeil Alexander-Walker tallied 13 apiece. RJ Barrett and Luguentz Dort both added 11, as five of their seven NBA players reached double figures; Dwight Powell and Dillon Brooks also with 6 each. Canada shot a blistering 57% from the field (40/70) including 11/14 from downtown, while racking up an impressive 20 steals.
The Tall Blacks await the winner of the other SuperCup game – Germany versus China – to determine their second and final opponent in this tournament. The game will be held at 1.45am NZT on Monday 14 August.
Stats:
New Zealand 76 – Delany 13 PTS | Wetzell 12 PTS & 4 REB | I. Fotu 11 PTS | Cameron 10 PTS & 5 REB & 4 AST | Te Rangi 8 PTS | Smith-Milner 7 PTS | Le’Afa 6 PTS | Britt 4 PTS | Ngatai 3 PTS | Brown 2 PTS & 7 REB
Canada 107 – Gilgeous-Alexander 26 PTS & 6 STL | Alexander-Walker 13 PTS & 8 AST | Olynyk 13 PTS | Barrett 11 PTS | Dort 11 PTS | Powell 6 PTS | Brooks 6 PTS
Quarter scores: 28-24, 67-38, 85-62, 107-76.
Box Score: bbnz.link/SuperCupVsCanada
