The Canadian Junior National team clinched top spot in group B of the 2012 FIBA Americas Championships with a 75-68 tough victory over Argentina. Andrew Wiggins poured in a team high 19 points and grabbed five rebounds. Trey Lyles continued his dominance by notching his third straight double-double with 16 points and 12 rebounds. Tyler Ennis finished with 14 points and five assists in the winning cause, while backcourt teammate Xavier Rathan Mayes also chipped in with 12 points, including a key three-pointer to give Canada a 72-63 margin of comfort as Argentina made a late push with 2:31 remaining. Argentina was led by shooting guard Martin Massone with 19 points on 3-of-6 three-pointers. Canada opened up the game strong and took leads of 19-15 after one quarter and 34-29 at half-time. Argentina stayed close and threatened to take the lead on several occasions in the second half coming but was unable to contain Canada's athleticism and ability to breakdown defenders from the wing. With the victory Team Canada advances to the semi-finals of the 2012 FIBA Americas and will play the second-place finisher in group A. Brazil and the United States of America both sit a 2-0 and will play each other to determine the semi-final seedings. Barring any upsets, Canada is on a collision course to meet the USA in the Finals in what will be a highly anticipated match-up between the two countries youngest and brightest stars.

Indiana Hoosiers commit Trey Lyles posted a monster double-double of 17 points and 16 rebounds in just 20 minutes to pace four Canadian players double-figures in 77-51 opening game route of Puerto Rico. Lyles dominated the game in opening half by scoring 16 first-half points in the first 20 minutes. The Saskatchewan native's size was simply too much for the Team Puerto Rico as Canada built a 43-17 half-time lead. Jamal Reynolds (Pickering, ON) was aggressive attacking the rack and finished with 11 points and a team-high five free-throws. Andrew Wiggins continued his assault on foreign competition with 9 points and seven rebounds in just in just 19 minutes. The Canadians will look to improve to 2-0 when they face Columbia in their second game of 2012 FIBA Americas championship in Brazil.

In the hunt for a sixth gold medal, USA men's teams are 38-2 overall in the FIBA Americas U18 Championship (formerly known as the Junior World Championship Qualifier), and have won gold in 1990, 1994, 1998, 2006 and 2010, silver in 2008 and bronze in 2002.

Canada — Ontario in particular — has been producing a stunning amount of talent at the point guard position of late. Most notably, Pickering’s Cory Joseph was a first-round pick last summer and might get a championship ring with the seemingly unbeatable San Antonio Spurs; Kevin Pangos of Holland Landing lit up the NCAA for Gonzaga, winning a slew of WCC awards as a freshman; Toronto’s Junior Cadougan took Marquette deep into the NCAA tournament and Toronto’s Myck Kabongo showed flashes in his first season at Texas and, with continued improvement, could be an NBA lottery pick next summer. Next on the list: Tyler Ennis, a Brampton native who was named New Jersey’s state player of the year while toiling for St. Benedict’s Prep in Newark. There are many in the Canadian basketball community who believe Ennis will be as good or better than any of the guards listed above.

Trey Lyles will represent Canada on the Junior Men's National Team next month in the FIBA Americas U18 Championship in Brazil. The 6-9 Lyles, an Indiana University recruit, was born in Canada and lived there for a few years. He took part in the USA Basketball Developmental National Team tryouts last summer in Colorado Springs, Colo. Lyles, ranked No. 9 nationally in the 2014 class, will leave for Canada in early June to practice with the team, then travel to Brazil for the tournament June 16-20. He will be joined on the Canadian team by Andrew Wiggins, the No. 1 prospect in the 2014 class by Rivals .com. A native of Canada, Wiggins plays at Huntington (W.Va.) Prep.

"we have one of deepest talent pools in recent memory. This has the makings to be a very special team and age group on our pathway to the senior men’s national team.” As for how Canada will do in Brazil? “With the people they can put together on that team, a medal is an absolute reality and a gold medal is not out of the question,”

Florida’s Billy Donovan will serve as the head coach for the 2012 FIBA Americas U18 Championship, UF announced on Tuesday. VCU coach Shaka Smart, a former UF assistant under Donovan, and Gonzaga’s Mark Few will serve as assistants for the championship, which run June 16-20 in Sao Sebastio do Paraiso, Brazil