PARIS – Colin Higgins scored a team-high 38 points, and Patrick Anderson added a triple-double as Team Canada defeated the host, France, 83-68, on Friday night at Bercy Arena.
Anderson scored 31 points, 13 assists and 12 rebounds, while Garrett Ostepchuk chipped in six points and two assists.
“As far as the tournament goes, it’s huge,” said Anderson, who is participating in his sixth Paralympic Games. “As far as memories go, I’ll never forget it. It was great to be out there, get in front of an unbelievable crowd, play in an amazing, well-played, exciting game, and look up and see friends and family again up there cheering us on, and having a great time.
“No matter what happens the rest of the tournament, I’ll always cherish this memory.”
Canada closed out on a 7-0 run and finished 35 of 68 shooting from the field while limiting France to 45 per cent shooting.
The Senior Men’s National Team outscored France 22-13 in the third quarter and led 61-54 heading into the fourth period.
“We talked about it before the game, but it’s hard to replicate a crowd like that,” said Higgins, who added seven rebounds and six assists. “We were able to come out, hit our first couple of buckets, quiet some people’s jitters a little – that was huge. We didn’t quiet the crowd by any means, but it was really fun to play in front of them.
Team Canada trailed by two, 41-39 at halftime.
Higgins had a team-high 21 points and two rebounds. Anderson added 12 points and six rebounds, while Nik Goncin, Bo Hedges and Vincent Dallaire chipped in two points each.
Canada shot 52 per cent through two quarters.
The SMNT led 26-20 after one period.
Higgins paced Canada with a game-high 16 points on 6 of 6 shooting from the field and 2 of 2 from beyond the arc. Anderson added six in the first quarter.
Canada shot 69 per cent from the field in the first period while limiting France to 7 of 14.
Up next, the SWNT will face Great Britain on Saturday at 6:45 a.m. ET.
Complete stats from Friday’s game can be found here.
Tournament schedule and results can be found on WBC’s website.
Images from the 2024 Paralympics can be found on the Canadian Paralympic Committee’s photo shelter here.
MEDIA CONTACT
Dhiren Mahiban
Media Attaché, Wheelchair Basketball
dmahiban@wheelchairbasketball.ca / 416-574-6682 (WhatsApp)