Incoming Freshman Houstan Leads Canada to Bronze at FIBA U19 World Cup
7/11/2021 3:13:00 PM | Men's Basketball
RIGA, Latvia -- University of Michigan men's basketball incoming freshman Caleb Houstan tallied 17 points to help Team Canada win the bronze medal at the FIBA U19 World Cup on Sunday (July 11) following a 101-92 victory over Serbia at Arena Riga. With the win, Canada earned just its second visit to the awards podium in team history.
After building an 11-point lead (33-22) after one quarter, the Serbians rallied in the second to take a four-point lead 54-50 heading into halftime. After the break, Serbia built as much as an 11-point lead before the Canadians rallied and evened the score at 74 at the end of the third quarter, setting up a fourth quarter battle for the bronze medal.
With a pair of Team Canada runs, 10-2 and an 11-0, over the last 12 minutes, the Canadians built a 13-point lead 97-84 with under three minutes left. Along with Houstan's 17 points, Arizona's Bennedict Mathurin scored 31, Creighton's Ryan Nembhard added 21 and Purdue's Zach Edey chipped in a double-double (12 points, 12 rebounds), as the Canadians matched any Serbian effort down the stretch to take the victory.
The medal was just Canada's second ever at the FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup, joining a 2017 Gold Medal squad that starred current New York Knicks guard RJ Barrett.
Overall, Houstan led Team Canada with 17.0 points per games, with six double-figure scoring games -- including a pair of 20+ point performances: 25 in a win over Spain (July 9) and 23 against the United States (July 10). He was second on the squad with 5.7 rebounds a game, while posting 17 assists (2.4 per game) and 16 steals (2.3 per game) in his seven starts.
Before reaching the bronze medal game, Team Canada opened its World Cup winning Group A thanks to wins over Lithuania (80-71; July 3), Japan (100-75; July 4) and Senegal (85-56; July 6), a game that Houstan posted a 15-point, 10-rebound double-double.
Beginning bracket play, Canada advanced to the quarterfinals with an 86-56 win over Puerto Rico (July 7), setting up a showdown with Spain. With a game-high 25 points from Houstan, Canada held off Spain, 81-77, for its first-ever win against the Spaniards, advancing to the medal round.
In the marquee game of the tournament, a border battle with the United States, Canada trailed the US at the break, 49-38, but Canada's second-half comeback -- despite outscoring Team USA 48-43 and Houstan's game-high 23 points -- was not enough as the Canadians fell 92-86 and moved into the bronze-medal game against Serbia.
Caleb Houstan's FIBA U19 World Cup
Team Canada (6-1) | Bronze Medal
| Date | Opponent | Score | Statistics |
| July 3 | Group A vs. Lithuania | W, 80-71 | 18 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assist, 2 steals |
| July 4 | Group A vs. Japan | W, 100-75 | 7 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals |
| July 6 | Group A vs. Senegal | W, 85-56 | 15 points, 10 rebounds, 1 steal |
| July 7 | R16 vs. Puerto Rico | W, 86-56 | 14 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals |
| July 9 | QF vs. Spain | W, 81-77 | 25 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 5 steals, 1 block |
| July 10 | SF vs. United States | L, 92-86 | 23 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists |
| July 11 | Bronze vs. Serbia | W, 101-92 | 17 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals |
