Patrick Anderson’s 31-point triple-double helped elevate the Canadian men’s wheelchair basketball team over France in a 83-68 victory in its opening game of the 2024 Paralympic tournament on Friday, at Paris.
Colin Higgins (Rothesay, N.B.) led Canada in scoring with 38 points, and Anderson (Edmonton, AB) also grabbed 12 rebounds and finished with 13 assists.
Nicolas Jouanserre, for France, tied Higgins with a game-high 38 points, and went five-for-five from three-point range, while captain Soufyane Mehiaoui was the next best scorer with 10, in a losing effort.
The challenge of playing in front of a raucous French home crowd was something the Canadians were ready for.
“We talked about it before the game, but it’s hard to replicate a crowd like that,” said Higgins, who added seven rebounds and six assists. “We were able to come out, hit our first couple of buckets, quiet some people’s jitters a little – that was huge.
“We didn’t quiet the crowd by any means, but it was really fun to play in front of them.
Team Canada began the game shooting efficiently, knocking down seven of their first eight field goals. Higgins racked up 16 points in the first quarter, shooting six-for-six from the field along with two made three-pointers to give Canada a 26-20 margin after the opening 10 minutes.
France managed to claim the momentum following a lights-out performance in the second quarter from Jouanserre, who scored 26 points in the first two quarters. The French team would out score Canada 21-13 to take a 41-39 lead at the end of the first half.
After the French extended their lead to six points in the third, Canada went on a 15-0 run midway through the frame. Anderson and Higgins combined for 13 of those points, putting Canada up 61-54 heading into the fourth quarter.
The hosts had been strong off the bench for three quarters, but in the fourth that help went away. The 39-year-old Jouanserre scored 10 of France’s 14 points in the final frame, but that was not enough, and Canada cruised to victory.
Anderson, in his sixth Paralympics, was thrilled by the win and the atmosphere, especially with Tokyo played in front of empty stands, due to COVID.
“As far as memories go, I’ll never forget it,” he said, to Wheelchair Basketball Canada. “It was great to be out there, get in front of an unbelievable crowd, play in an amazing, well-played, exciting game, and look up and see friends and family again up there cheering us on, and having a great time.”
Canada will look to build in its momentum Saturday morning in the second group stage matchup, against Great Britain.