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TSN Raptors Reporter

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MEXICO CITY - Reaching the tail end of their most underwhelming half of the FIBA Americas to this point, Canada trailed a desperate Puerto Rico team by nine points when Jay Triano addressed his players during a timeout.

Puerto Rico, winless against teams still in the tournament, was fresh off a day of rest, while Canada looked every bit like a team playing their fourth game in as many nights.

As yet another thunderstorm raged on outside - something that has become a daily staple of Canada's games this week - the on-court product was equally turbulent. Andrew Wiggins air-balled a free throw. Then, Cory Joseph air-balled a three. Puerto Rico grabbed consecutive rebounds off their own free throws. Player after player slid on the sponsored decal at the top of the key on both sides of the floor (more on that later).

Triano had seen enough. It's one thing to be outplayed, but his team was getting thoroughly outworked.

"I think in the one timeout we asked them, I said, we need to win the last 2:50, or whatever it was on the clock, and that we were getting outplayed - we were getting outworked, basically," Triano said. "I mean, they got three offensive rebounds off of free throws because they wanted it more. This has to matter to our guys and I was really pleased with the way they responded."

The Canadians closed out that quarter on an 11-0 run, nine of those points coming from the free-throw line. For the second straight frame, back-up point guard Phil Scrubb knocked down a go-ahead jumper at the buzzer and they never looked back from there.

Outscoring their opponents 35-16 in a dominant third quarter, Canada cruised to a 112-92 victory, their third straight to close out the preliminary round.

"I think we grew up in that last 2:30 or 2:50 [of the first half], or whatever it was," Triano said. "And at halftime, we challenged our guys. This is an important game for us. These games and the record counts moving forward, our guys are completely aware of that, but every game's going to be a battle and we have to be the hardest working team."

Canada had shot just 2-for-14 from three-point range in the first 20 minutes. Nik Stauskas, coming off a breakout game the night before, got things going in the third, nailing a corner three. Wiggins would hit one on the subsequent possession. Stauskas knocked down another and before long, Canada had drained five of its eight attempts from distance. Their offence was clicking - much like it did Thursday night in a win over Venezuela - and their defence looked even better.

"The game is full of runs," said Wiggins, who had a team-leading 19 points in 23 minutes of action Friday. "We didn’t play good the first half. The second quarter, the last two minutes, we really jumped on them to go up two. I think we were down by nine or something like that. The third quarter, we came out aggressive in the first five minutes. It was really important for us. We took advantage of it."

Wiggins was one of six Canadians to score in double figures. Stauskas had 15 points, as did Cory Joseph and Kelly Olynyk. Brady Heslip and Phil Scrubb poured in 13 and 12, respectively, as their depth was on full display. Dwight Powell sat out, resting a strained left elbow he sustained on a hard fall in Thursday's game, but the team barely missed a beat. Scrubb stepped up and ran the point with Joseph on the bench in foul trouble to start the fourth. Once again, Triano was able to spread the minutes around, with none of his players logging more than 24 minutes.

The head coach praised his team for their resiliency after the win. After their disappointing opening day loss to Argentina, the Canadians seem to be adapting to the FIBA game, learning to withstand the physical play of the competition that has them targeted as tournament favourites.

One thing they're unable to control is the condition of the court, an issue that came to light in Friday's game.

Wiggins was the first to slip on the sponsored decal, located by each free-throw line, on a drive to the basket late in the second quarter. Joseph would follow. Olynyk nearly did the splits, sliding on the logo at the opposite end in the second half. With three of Canada's players - all property of NBA teams - slipping and sliding, risking serious injury, Triano had some strong words for FIBA after the game.

"You know, this isn't the first event that this has happened," Triano said of the court decals. "It's something that is, I think, dangerous. I hope and pray that all the players on all the teams don't have somebody slip on that." 

Triano compared what was happening to a common occurrence in hockey.

"It's just not the same as playing on the hardwood," he explained. "In hockey, we call it, 'you catch an edge.' If you catch an edge on that thing, you slide. You don't have any footwork and your feet slide out from underneath you. It's something that I hope becomes a topic of concern and that people address it, see if we can do something about it."

Canada's players were tight-lipped about FIBA's hazardous on-court advertising. Wiggins hadn't noticed the slippery logos until after he fell, got back to the bench and one of his teammates mentioned it.

"You can kind of tell, it's not the regular gym floor," said the Minnesota Timberwolves forward and reigning NBA Rookie of the Year. "You just have to be careful out there."

With Cuba and Brazil eliminated from the tournament, other teams' results against those teams won't count towards their records in the second round. Canada advances with five points, or a 2-1 record, trailing only the undefeated Argentina and Mexico, who have six points apiece. Canada is tied with the Dominican Republic.

They'll get a much-needed day off on Saturday before playing the four advancing teams from the opposite group (Mexico, Dominican Republic, Panama and Uruguay) from Sunday to Wednesday.