Canada vs Jamaica

Canada seized control from the opening tip, outscoring Jamaica 32-15 in the first quarter. The hosts shot 58% from the field for the game and held Jamaica to 37%, building a lead that never dipped below 17 points after halftime.

Dillon Brooks led all Canadian scorers with 20 points to go with three steals. Andrew Nembhard added 17 points, four rebounds and four assists, playing alongside his brother Ryan for Canada for the first time since childhood. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the reigning NBA MVP playing in his hometown of Hamilton, contributed 16 points, five assists, four rebounds and four steals.

Jamaica managed to match Canada 25-25 in the second quarter — their best period of the night — but Canada responded by winning the third quarter 32-15, the same margin as the first, to put the game firmly out of reach.

Jamaica opened the second quarter with energy, briefly cutting the deficit after a 25-25 period that kept the halftime margin at 17 points (57-40). But Canada opened the third quarter with a 13-2 run, turning a manageable gap into a 32-point lead. The run was sparked by Canada's pressure defence — Gilgeous-Alexander and Brooks combined for seven steals — and transition offence that Jamaica could not contain.

• Dillon Brooks (Canada): Game-high 20 points, 3 steals. The Phoenix Suns forward was aggressive from the start, matching Gilgeous-Alexander with 8 points in the first quarter.
• Andrew Nembhard (Canada): 17 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists. The Indiana Pacers guard shot efficiently and ran the offence smoothly alongside his brother Ryan.
• Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Canada): 16 points, 5 assists, 4 rebounds, 4 steals. A quieter scoring night than his 26-point outburst against Puerto Rico three days earlier, but his all-around impact was undeniable.
• Andrew Thelwell (Jamaica): A game-high 25 points for the visitors, showing composure against a far deeper Canadian roster.

Canada's 58% field-goal shooting (to Jamaica's 37%) and 70.6% two-point conversion rate tell the story of a team that controlled the paint at will. The hosts led for 38 minutes and 7 seconds of the 40-minute game; Jamaica led for just 39 seconds. Canada's 41-point biggest lead and 11-0 biggest scoring run underline the one-sided nature of the contest.

Attendance at TD Coliseum was 10,441 — a second consecutive sell-out in Hamilton for Gilgeous-Alexander's homecoming weekend.

Canada finishes first in Group B at 6-0 with a point differential of +133, 151 points better than second-placed Bahamas (-18). The result secures top seeding for the Second Round, which begins on 27 August 2026. The top three finishers from the Americas Qualifiers will qualify for the 2027 FIBA Basketball World Cup in Qatar.

Jamaica finished the first round at 2-4 and will need to regroup ahead of the Second Round, where the margin for error narrows significantly.

Canada's NBA-laden roster operated at a different level from Jamaica from the opening whistle. The 38-point margin reflected the talent gap, and the Nembhard brothers' reunion added a sentimental subplot to a ruthlessly efficient performance. Canada enters the Second Round as the team to beat in the Americas.