On day 5 of the 2023 FIBA World Cup, Arturs Zagars and Latvia put up a fight against Canada but were not able to replicate their three-point shooting or shut down their opponent's half-court offense as they did against France. This culminated in a 101-75 blowout loss to the United States northern neighbors.
Germany and the Dominican Republic took care of business against Finland and Angola respectively to win their groups.
Here's a breakdown of the day's key games.
Three Points: Canada was too much for Latvia, Germany finished strong, and the Dominican Republic did enough to get the job done
Latvia was the little engine that could until they ran out of gas
Latvia eliminating France is the biggest moment of the tournament so far, and easily the country's biggest basketball win of this century.
Latvia attempted to carry the momentum from that victory into today's game against Canada, and they even led by 10 at the end of the first quarter.
Arturs Zagars' basketball revival continued, finishing the game with 11 points and four assists, and he was buoyed well by Andrejs Gražulis (16 points), Rodions Kurucs (14 points), and Roland Smits (nine points).
But after that slow first quarter, Canada woke up. They won the second quarter by 11 points to give themselves a one-point halftime lead, led by 10 points at the end of the third and then won the fourth quarter 34-18.
Canada's star man Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the way for them once again, finishing with 27 points, six rebounds, and six assists.
In the third quarter, Latvia struggled to limit Canada's transition opportunities and that opened the floodgates for them. They started to rack up easy buckets, build their lead, and then took total control of the game on both ends. Gilgeous-Alexander scored 16 points in the third quarter alone.
Latvia's fight and overall performance are admirable, and it will be interesting to see if they can make any noise in the next phase. But against teams as good as Canada, they need Kristaps Porzingis if they're going to pose a real threat.
Germany destroys Finland, a fitting end to the opening phase for both teams
Germany is good enough to win the gold medal. They appeared to be that good on paper before the tournament started and after dominating Japan, beating Australia without Franz Wagner, and then blowing out Finland today it's clear they mean business.
Wagner was out again today, and thus Dennis Schroder was their leading scorer for the second straight game with 15 points alongside Isaac Bonga who also finished with 15.
Germany's 3-0 start is impressive, but Schroder has made it clear they're not satisfied, and they expect to improve and go far in this tournament.
Like I always say, every game I play, I want to win. Of course, you can't win every game, but when you set the tone first, dictate the game, and bring everything you have for 40 minutes, it will give you the chance to come out on top. We did this in the last three games, and now we have to keep getting better. Dennis Schroder, talking to BasketNewsSchroder and Germany are here to win the gold medal, and if Wagner comes back, they might do that.
For Finland, this is a summer to forget. They got off to a hot start against Australia in their opener and have not played that well since. Losses to Australia and Germany are not surprising, but you'd expect them to keep at least one of those games close.
When you add in that these losses sandwiched a shock loss to Japan, Finland's basketball regression this summer begins to set in.
The Fins have time to continue growing their basketball culture around Lauri Markannen, but the clock is ticking, and continuing to disappoint in international play is not how you help the game grow back home.
One player can only do so much both on, and off the court.
The Dominican Republic have set themselves up for a deep World Cup run
From day one, the Dominican Republic has been a sneaky underdog team for a deep tournament run.
They've got an NBA superstar in Karl-Anthony Towns, supporting NBA players alongside him in Lester Quinones and L.J. Figueroa, and a good rotation of strong overseas players such as Andres Feliz, Victor Liz, Jean Montero, and more to round out a deep and reliable rotation.
They've also got a tried and tested FIBA head coach in Nestor "Che" Garcia.
The Dominican Republic has risen to the occasion. They faced a fired-up host Philippines squad on opening day who threw the kitchen sink at them but they held strong and got the job done.
They faced Italy, a talented squad with a good blend of prospects and experienced veterans capable of beating most teams on any given day, for day 2 of play and led by double-digits against them in their eventual five-point victory.
Today, they beat Angola 75-67 with Towns only playing 15 minutes.
In the next round, they will face Serbia. That will not only be their biggest test of the tournament so far, but a win there positions them for a friendlier quarterfinal match which gives them the best chance possible of getting a medal and qualifying for the 2024 Olympics.
They've risen to their challenges so far, let's see if they continue to do so to keep their Olympics and medal dreams alive.
