Toronto, ON – (BasketballBuzz) – Canada’s Junior Men’s National team took centre stage at Ryerson University’s Kerr Hall for the 2nd Annual Red & White game.
South Carolina Gamecocks commit Duane Notice (Woodridge,ON) put on a show with a game-high 16 points and team-high 8 rebounds to push Team White to a comfortable 71-55 victory over Team Red.
In a game that featured the top Canadian Basketball prospects at the U19 level, Notice displayed his high level of maturity and play by shooting an efficient 6-of-12 from the floor, a perfect 3-for-3 from the line, while adding a three-pointer in the process and three assists.
Team White started off slow but took a 16-15 lead thanks to Notice’s buzzer beater to end the quarter and from there they extended the lead to 42-30 at half-time.
Colorado State Rams second-year man Joe De Ciman (Regina, SK) also played a strong game, finishing with 12 points, 5 rebounds and two-three pointers.
Team Red was paced by Trey Lyles (Saskatoon, SK) the 2014 uncommitted forward was easily the most polished and complete player on the floor finishing with 13 points and nine rebounds on 6-of-13 shooting.
Xavier-Rathan Mayes (11 points, 5 rebounds) and Kaza Keane (6 points, 5 assists) (Illinois Redbirds) also played well for Team Red and both will play integral roles for the Canadians as they move forward.
Canada looks to be extremely deep despite the absence of Andrew Wiggins and has enough pieces to make a deep run and could potentially challenge for medal, with a stable backcourt that will feature Syracuse’s Tyler Ennis (6 points, 6 assists, 6 rebounds) tons of firepower on the wing and upfront.
The game was a great opportunity to evaluate some the top prospects and gave Head Coach Roy Rana and its staff a glimpse of the tough choices they will have to make as they trim the roster down to the final 12 who will compete for a World championship.
Training camp continues at Ryerson University as the Canadians now prepare for two more exhibition games against the always tough Brazilians and the United States before opening up the 2013 FIBA U19 World Championships against Spain on July 27.
