Canada needed a hero. We got one. Unexpectedly, from Dillon Brooks, a player best known as a villain.
Unless you are a night owl or a hoop superfan, you missed the most exciting few minutes in Canadian basketball history.
Over less than 300 seconds, insomniac fans experienced both the “thrill of victory, agony of defeat” with a heart-stopping ending you wouldn’t believe if you saw it in a Hollywood movie.
After dominating most of the game, Canada took their foot off the gas.
USA had trailed by as many as 10 points in the fourth and were still down by four with 4.2 seconds left.
That’s when the fireworks began.
The US had only one option: make the first shot, miss the second, and pray.
Bridges did as instructed, but when his second foul shot clanged off the rim, it bounced right, and no one touched it. Bridges sprinted from the foul line corralled the ball, gathered himself behind the 3-point line, spun and fired the shot that sent the game into overtime.
Bridge’s overtime-forcing miracle will go down in Canadian hoops history, surpassed perhaps only by Kawhi Leonard’s legendary game-winning three-pointer for the Toronto Raptors (minus a few breathtaking bounces).
“There was a lot of happiness (after that shot),” said Bridges’ US teammate, Austin Reaves. “You live to see another five minutes and hopefully pull out a win.”
But the excitement didn’t end there. After a timeout for an official review with .6 seconds on the clock, Toronto-born Kamloops-raised Kelly Olynik launched a deep shot that barely missed, sending the game into overtime.
The Canadian dream was not over yet. In a thrilling overtime, the Canadians once again asserted their dominance to record a historic upset victory, finishing third at the Basketball World Cup. Canada’s bronze was the first-ever podium finish in international competition.
Canada’s stars Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (SGA) and Brooks shined once again when it mattered most.
Mississauga’s Brooks, hated by many fans for his scrappy play and trash talk, became the hero as he tortured his US counterparts with the best game of his life.
Gilgeous-Alexander, who grew up in Hamilton, took over in overtime, scoring the first seven points to finish with 31, 6 rebounds, and 12 assists.
Brooks became a focal point because the US tried to limit All-NBA guard SGA’s impact by double-teaming him. Brooks responded by draining his first six 3s and shooting 7-of-8 from deep. He was 12 of 18 from the floor and 8 of 10 from the foul line, with five assists, four rebounds and two blocks.
The US seemed to have nothing left after Bridges’ miraculous shot. In overtime, the Canadians regrouped, never trailing.
“We won the first 40 minutes. Well, obviously not, but we won the majority of the first 40 minutes, and we didn’t think it was a fluke,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “So, we just tried to focus on winning the next five.”
That’s precisely what they did, and now it’s over.
The win improved Canada’s all-time record against the US in FIBA senior men’s competitions to 2-21. Until last night’s wee hours, Canada had never placed at the World Cup and hadn’t won an Olympic medal in men’s basketball since 1936.
The gutty victory bodes well for Canada’s Olympic hopes. Our men took bronze playing without at least two stars in Jamal Murray and Andrew Wiggins, And the new head coach, Jordi Fernandez, was hired just weeks before training camp began.
“We have a great program,” said Fernandez, who took over after Nick Nurse left the job following his dismissal by the Toronto Raptors. “This team was amazing, special. “It’s the beginning of something that’s going to last for a long time.”
We can only hope.
