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Monday evening, Canada concluded its Tuto Marchand Continental Cup schedule with a 77-70 loss to Brazil, finishing the tournament with an 0-4 record. The series allowed five countries to warm up for the 2013 FIBA Americas tournament, the results of which competition will determine seeding for the 2014 FIBA World Cup. Orlando Magic forward Andrew Nicholson will compete in the FIBA Americas, and his performance during the Tuto Marchand Continental Cup showed that he can be a key offensive cog in Canada's attack. Here's a look at his game log:
| Date | Opponent | Result | Mins | Pts | Rebs | Asts | Stls | Blks | TOs | FGs | 3FGs | FTs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22 August | Puerto Rico | L, 78-71 | 28 | 21 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9/15 | 2/3 | 1/4 |
| 23 August | Argentina | L, 83-74 | 26 | 17 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6/11 | 3/3 | 2/2 |
| 24 August | Dominican Republic | L, 74-68 | 15 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2/4 | 0/0 | 1/1 |
| 26 August | Brazil | L, 77-70 | 24 | 17 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6/12 | 1/1 | 4/7 |
| TOTAL | 93 | 60 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 23/42 | 6/7 | 8/14 | ||
| AVERAGE | 23.3 | 15.0 | 2.5 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.3 | 1.3 | 54.8% | 85.7% | 57.1% | ||
Nicholson, who led the Magic in per-minute scoring as a rookie, put on a show in San Juan, scoring at an impressive rate. He even showed international three-point distance, converting six of his seven triple-tries in the four games. If he can extend his range to the NBA line, he could be an especially potent option off Orlando's bench in his second professional season.
As ever, though, Nicholson's lack of punch on the glass is disconcerting. A player of his size should snare more than 10 boards in 93 minutes of play, even when he's playing alongside an excellent rebounder in Tristan Thompson.
If nothing else, Nicholson at least managed to shake off whatever ailed him in two friendlies against Jamaica earlier in August: in those games, Nicholson missed more than two-thirds of his shots.
Canada opens its FIBA Americas schedule on August 30th against Jamaica. The tournament runs through September 11th.
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