Creating space on the stepback, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander hit a pivotal 3-pointer to put Canada up by five points.
He served a bit of revenge on Mikal Bridges by making him bite and slip on the stepback.
After hitting a late go-ahead midrange bucket to give Canada a two-point lead with 34.6 seconds left, Bridges stole Gilgeous-Alexander’s potential game-winner and he hit a ridiculous 3-pointer following a missed free throw to force overtime.
No harm, no foul though. Gilgeous-Alexander was phenomenal in overtime as Canada defeated the United States, 127-118. The win gave Canada third place in the 2023 FIBA World Cup, its best finish in event history.
After leading 91-82 after three quarters, Canada’s lead slowly slipped away as the United States erased what had been a 13-point deficit at its largest.
It felt like the United States used all its juice just to simply force overtime because it looked fatigued in the final five minutes. In anti-climatic fashion, Canada won the OT period 16-7.
It appears not playing in the finals didn’t leave a sour taste in Gilgeous-Alexander’s mouth. He was arguably the best player on the court that featured several prominent NBA players.
In 40 minutes, he had 31 points on 11-of-20 shooting, 12 assists and six rebounds. He also went a perfect 8-of-8 from the free-throw line. He led Canada to the win with seven points in OT — tying the USA’s total point production in the extra five minutes.
Gilgeous-Alexander concluded his summer campaign with his best performance yet and was the face of Canada’s best FIBA World Cup run in program history.
Lu Dort also played an important role in Canada’s impressive win. In 32 minutes off the bench, he had 11 points on 4-of-10 shooting, six rebounds and two assists. He was part of its closing lineup and played the fourth-most minutes.
Let’s look at instant reactions and highlights from Canada’s nine-point overtime win.