Canada defeated host Great-Britain 71-51 in semi-final action today in Manchester in front of an enthusiastic and boisterous home crowd. Without star Joey Johnson (Lorette, MB) who has left Manchester to join his German pro-league club, the team regrouped and elevated their play to fill the gap. Patrick Anderson (Fergus, ON) played outstanding basketball, showing once again he is a master of the sport, scoring an impressive 30 points, five steals and 11 rebounds.
“We are looking forward to face the Aussies in the final,” comments Anderson. “It will be a challenge to play without Joey as he is a big player for us in the middle of the court. But on the other hand it’s an opportunity for others to step up. We’ve got one or two technical adjustments in order to come out victorious tomorrow.”
In the qualifying round, Team Canada lost its opening game against Australia, and then went on win to consecutive game against Great Britain and Sweden to qualify for the semi-finals. The team has shown great progress from game to game and aims to continue the trend in their quest for World Cup Gold.
“The keys of today’s success was the guys motivation, the great team efforts which stepped up from round robin action,” said Head Coach Paul Bowes. “Offensively, both we and the Australian are strong. We’ll have to work on defensive strategies and continue to play as a team in order to win tomorrow.”
Starting tomorrow at 11:15 AM at the Manchester Velodrome, the Gold Medal game promises to be exciting and entertaining as both teams share a fierce but friendly rivalry as the top wheelchair basketball teams in the world.
Ranked #1 by the International Wheelchair Basketball Federation entering the World Cup, Canada’s Men’s team is an international powerhouse that has triumphed in back-to-back Paralympic Games (2000, 2004.
The Visa Paralympic World Cup is the biggest international, annual multi-sport competition after the Paralympic Games and has been staged in Manchester, Great Britain for the past three years. Sanctioned by the International Paralympic Committee, the event plays a critical role in providing international competition between Paralympic Games.
