FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament: Canada vs. Czech Republic game preview, rosters, how to watch

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Who's Playing

Matchup: Canada vs. Czech Republic

Semi-Finals Bracket

  • A1. Canada vs. B2. Czech Republic
  • B1. Turkey vs. A2. Greece
  • Championship: Winner of Canada-Czech vs. Winner of Turkey-Greece

*A1/B1 represents Group A/B winner; A2/B2 represents Group A/B runner-up.

Where to watch

Date: Saturday, July 3rd

Time: 4:05 p.m. ET

TV: CBC and DAZN (Canada), ESPN+ (United States), Livebasketball.tv (Global)

Location: Victoria Memorial Arena, Victoria, British Columbia

Rosters

Canada
  Name Position Height Current Club
1 Luguentz Dort G 6'4" Oklahoma City Thunder
2 Trae Bell-Haynes G 6'2" Crailaheim Merlins
4 Nickeil Alexander-Walker G 6'5" New Orleans Pelicans
6 Cory Joseph G 6'4" Detroit Pistons
7 Dwight Powell F 6'9" Dallas Mavericks
8 Trey Lyles C 6'10" San Antonio Spurs
9 RJ Barrett G 6'5" New York Knicks
10 Anthony Bennett F 6'8" Cangrejeros de Santurce
11 Aaron Doornekamp F 6'7" Lenovo Tenerife
22 Andrew Wiggins G 6'7" Golden State Warriors
23 Mychal Mulder G 6'4" Golden State Warriors
44 Andrew Nicholson F 6'9" Fujian Sturgeons

 

Czech Republic
  Name Position Height Current Club
1 Patrik Auda C 6'9" AS Pistoia Basket 2000 Srl
4 Tomas Vyoral G 6'3" BK JIP Pardubice
6 Patrick Samoura G 6'6" USK Praha
8 Tomas Satoransky G 6'7" Chicago Bulls
11 Blake Schilb F 6'6" Champagne Chalons Reims Basket
12 Ondrej Balvin C 7'1" RETAbet Bilbao Basket
13 Jakub Sirina G 6'1" Opava
15 Martin Peterka C 6'8" ERA Nymburk
17 Jaromir Bohacik F 6'6" SIG Strasbourg
19 Ondrej Sehnal G 6'3" USK Praha
23 Lukas Palyza F 6'8" ERA Nymburk
24 Jan Vesley C 7'0" Fenerbahce Beko

Game Preview

Canada closed out their Group Stage with a perfect 2-0 record, dominating China in a 30-point win in the second game after squeaking out a comeback win over Greece in the first game.

MORE: Takeaways from Canada Basketball's Group Stage

Behind another strong and efficient performance from Andrew Wiggins, who led the team in scoring for the second-consecutive game with 20 points on 5-for-9 shooting from the field with three 3s, Canada is rolling into the Semi-Finals stage of the Qualifying Tournament with great momentum.

It was a team contribution for the Canadians, who had seven different players score double figures in the win over China. Joining Wiggins was RJ Barrett (16 points), Andrew Nicholson (14), Dwight Powell (12), Nickeil Alexander-Walker (11), Luguentz Dort (11) and Trey Lyles (11), showing just how many weapons this team can beat you with.

Outside of the starting five of Wiggins, Barrett, Lyles, Powell and Cory Joseph, 22-year-olds Alexander-Walker and Dort have made their impact felt on the tournament.

Alexander-Walker had 18 points in a spark off the bench in the victory over Greece, and added eight boards and five assists to his stat sheet in the win over China. Dort has continued to showcase why he is seen as one of the best young defenders in the NBA, playing suffocating defence on any matchup he has taken on so far.

The Czechs lost their first game to Turkey but came away with a massive one-point win over Uruguay to keep their Olympic hopes alive. Chicago Bulls guard Tomas Satoransky has been the team's star, averaging 17.0 points, 7.0 assists and 6.0 rebounds over his country's two games. They also have Washington Wizards' former No. 6 overall pick of the 2011 NBA Draft, Jan Vesley, who went for a 13-point, 11-rebound double-double against Turkey before going cold from the field against Uruguay.

The key to Canada beating Czech Republich is containing Satoransky and Vesley, so expect Dort and Powell to have to step up to help their country advance to the Championship Round.

Remember: it's win or go home from here on out. Both teams are just two wins away from qualifying for the Tokyo Olympics.

Canada vs. Czech Republic: Betting odds, spread, over/under

Spread: Canada -15.5 (-120) , Czech Republic +15.5 (-120)

Canada Money Line: -2000

Czech Republic Money Line: +750

Over/under: 176.5 (-120)

Odds courtesy of Bet365.

The views on this page do not necessarily reflect the views of the NBA or its clubs.

Author(s)
Kyle Irving Photo

Kyle Irving is an NBA content producer for The Sporting News.