BOOMERS FALL TO CANADA IN TOUGH FIRST OUTING IN PERTH

Jock Landale entered the starting line-up alongside Boomers stalwarts Mills, Dellavedova, Ingles and Bogut. Landale had the first bucket for the Boomers with Joe Ingles finding him for the slam early on, but it was Kevin Pangos who was locked in early for Canada, as the visitors got out to a 15-6 lead to force an Andrej Lemanis time out.

The Boomers eventually rallied, with Patty Mills dropping back-to-back threes as the Boomers trailed 25-20 at the end of one.

The Canadians appeared to have all the answers in the second quarter, as whenever the Boomers looked like cutting the margin to a single possession, the Canadians would answer back by way of a Pangos dime or a three-pointer.

Jock Landale continued to have his influence in the second, totalling 13 points and six rebounds by the end of the first half. At the half-time break the Boomers trailed 36-46, with Canadian captain Kevin Pangos having registered 13 points, four assists and four steals as the visitors dropped seven first-half threes to give themselves a double-digit lead at the main break.

Some defensive breakdowns early in the second half saw the Canadians extend their lead to 51-38. However, once again the Boomers began to mount a comeback, as half-way through the third the Australians had drawn back within five.

Some of the Boomers stars began to lift the team, with an emphatic Andrew Bogut block, a Patty Mills dime and a Joe Ingles and-one lay-up forcing Nick Nurse into calling a timeout.

Following the time-out huddle, a tough lay-up and a three from Chris Goulding yielded cheers from the Perth crowd as the Boomers clawed back within three with two minutes remaining in the third. However, a tough pull-up three from Kaza Kajami-Keane steadied the Canadians, and in keeping with the storyline so far, Canada remained in control.

Entering the last period with the Boomers trailing by seven, a sense of urgency was in the air, with the Boomers needing to lift if they were to come back and claim victory. Unfortunately, like much of the game, the Boomers failed to convert from the floor, highlighted by their 6-34 shooting from beyond the three-point arc.

Mitch Creek made a cameo in the fourth period, converting on a strong drive to the bucket when the Boomers were in need of some offense.

However, the Canadians eventually broke the back of the Aussies who could never quite seem to close the gap. With the Canadians up by ten points with four minutes to go, threes to Pangos, Scrubb and Kajami-Keane secured the victory for the visitors.

From the Boomers perspective, Patty Mills finished as the game’s leading scorer with 20 points while Jock Landale impressed as the starting power forward, registering 18 points and eight rebounds.

Bogut also tallied a double-double for the Boomers, but ultimately it was the Australian’s struggles from three-point land combined with an impressive offensive performance from a Kevin Pangos inspired Canadian team that saw the final score read 90-70 in favour of Canada.

Find the box score here.

The Boomers will play again play Canada tomorrow at RAC Arena, tipping off at 5:30pm (7:30pm AEST) live and exclusive on SBS Viceland and SBS on Demand.

The Boomers succumbed to Canada 90-70 in what was an impressive performance by the visitors, holding Australia to 6-34 shooting from beyond the arc.

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