Korea the Latest Team to Deny Canada in the William Jones Cup
Canada were still looking for their first William Jones Cup 2019 win, but against Korea, they went looking in the wrong place.
While the Canadian team, made up of members of the UBC Thunderbirds, were yet to record a win in the competition, Korea had only one loss to their name so far, so were not going to be easy opponents for them.
Manroop Clair did his best to try and get Canada off to the best possible start, but with Korea keeping up the pressure in the low post, the Canadian team still trailed early on. Kim Jong-kyu stepped up the scoring for Korea just before half-time, lifting them to a 49-35 lead after twenty minutes played.
Grant Shepherd then started doing his thing, taking command of Canada's scoring and rebounding, but with Lee Jung-hyun catching fire on the offensive end for Korea, Shepherd's contribution fell short of changing Canada's fortunes.
The teams were more evenly matched in the final period of play, with Jack Cruz-Dumont and Mason Bourcier seeing the best scoring chances for Canada. Going into it trailing by twenty-five points, though, they did not step up their game enough to overturn the heavy deficit.
Lee led Korea with 20 points in their 101-79 win, which keeps them behind only Mighty Sports-Philippines in the standings. Shepherd once again led Canada with 24 points and 15 rebounds in the loss, while Bourcier had 15 points of his own and Manroop Clair contributed 13.
Elsewhere, Iran picked up their second straight win after a closely-fought, back-and-forth thriller with Jordan. Ibrahim Fadi had 21 points for Jordan, but Iran's consistency from the field lifted them to victory by a final score of 82 points to 77.
It was also a mixed day for home fans - a late surge from Japan denied Chinese Taipei White, the final score in that one 68-60 to the Japanese team. It was all too easy for Chinese Taipei Blue against Indonesia, though, as they were relentless in the low post and dropped sixteen three-pointers as they ran out winners 94-57.
Canada are now running short of chances to change their fortunes and salvage pride in the William Jones Cup. They will next be in action on the 20th July against Jordan, and Japan the day after. The trophy is now out of reach for them, all that's left is to exit the tournament with at least a win.
Check back here for updates on the progress or find out more on the official William Jones Cup website.
Picture: Rich Lam
