Canada showed the Boomers why many pundits see the Canadians as Olympic medal contenders, pulling off a 93-83 victory in Lille on Tuesday.
Australian coach Brian Goorjian, who welcomed Dante Exum back onto the floor for his first minutes of these Olympics, thought the game was decided in the third quarter.
“Fifteen points off turnovers in the third quarter gave them the cushion that was the game,” Goorjian said.
“They have multiple guys coming in that can put heat and pressure on the ball. We had trouble getting into anything in the second half.”
Dante Exum returned from a compound dislocation of his finger and scored 15 points in 17 minutes.

“He was key tonight and gives us a better chance to go where we want to go. His size and physicality to create for others was important.”
RJ Barrett from Canada led all scorers with 24 points, supported by 16 from Shai Gligeous-Alexander and Dillon Brooks. Josh Giddey chipped in a team-high 19 points, seven rebounds, and six assists.
Inside the opening two minutes of the game, two quick fouls on Gilgeous-Alexander saw him head to the bench, where he stayed for the rest of the quarter.
Patty Mills and Josh Giddey each made difficult three pointers in the opening exchanges, with Josh’s giving Australia a 13-8 advantage midway through the first quarter.
Then Dante checked in for his first taste of the Paris 2024 Olympics and made an instant impact, scoring four points in his first minute on the floor.
At the first quarter break, Australia was up 28-26.
In the second quarter, Dyson Daniels dazzled with a spin move into an acrobatic layup and followed it up with a dunk to give Australia a 44-41 lead.
Both teams were trading the lead to close the first half, but Australia emerged with a 49-45 lead going back to the locker room.
Canada came out of half-time with added ferocity, forcing turnovers and limiting Josh Giddey’s effectiveness. In the period Canada found the lead and led by as many as 10 points, but back-to-back Jack McVeigh three-pointers to close the quarter brought the deficit down to three.
Australia kept threatening to wipe the deficit early in the fourth quarter, led by Patty’s activity to deflect Canada’s passes. Still, the Canadians continued to find answers through RJ Barrett and Gilgeous-Alexander.
Dante and Jock Landale kept Australia in the game, scoring six points combined on back-to-back possessions with 3:25 left, 85-78.
Earlier in the day, Spain, which Australia defeated in their first game, won against Greece 84-77. Group A has Canada undefeated on top, Australia second, Spain third and Greece fourth.
Teams placed first and second in each group automatically go through to the quarter-finals. The two best third-placed teams in the tournament also qualify for the quarter-finals.
The last group match for the Boomers is against Giannis Antetokounmpo and Greece at 9:30pm AEST on Friday 2 August.
“You’re playing the best athlete in the world and one of the best players in the world. That’s going to be another battle,” Goorjian said.
Jeff Dickinson-Fox