Canada opened the second window of the FIBA men’s AmeriCup 2025 qualifiers with an 88-71 win over the Dominican Republic on Thursday at Sasktel Centre in Saskatoon.
Mfiondu Kabengele scored a team-high 17 points, along with two blocks. Trae Bell-Haynes added eight points, four rebounds, and a game-high ten assists.
Canada is now 3-0 in the qualifiers despite little practice and a blend of newer and older players on the squad.
“I thought it was seamless, the young guys that came in, and I think that’s a testament to how we’re building our federation,” said Canada head coach Nathaniel Mitchell.
“We had three guys that were on our U19 gold medal team [in 2017] get a chance to play up with our senior men’s national team.”
The Canadians have a chance to remain undefeated in their next matchup against Mexico on Sunday.
LJ Figueroa paced the visiting Dominican Republic with 18 points.
Canada began to pull away in the second quarter, jumping out to an 11-point lead after Jackson Rowe connected on back-to-back three-pointers. Rowe followed it up with a block, leaving the home team up 39-24.
Rowe opened the fourth with a three-pointer, followed by an emphatic slam by Fardaw Aimaq to give Canada a 72-47 lead. The lead never got within ten points for the rest of the game.
Canada honoured 3×3 and senior men’s national team athlete, Chad Posthumus, who died at age 33 earlier this week, with black patches on their jerseys that read “CP.”
The CEBL’s Winnipeg Sea Bears said Thursday that Posthumus, the team’s captain, suffered a brain aneurysm during a training session in Winnipeg on November 9. He then battled complications from a corrective surgery that left him in critical condition in the intensive care unit and did not recover.
“He’s a member of the family,” said Bell-Haynes. “We play for him… Canada Basketball is a brotherhood, and when you look at the last quad… Chad was a big part of that, and we’re going to miss him. The gesture was a great touch.”