Canada falls to Germany, misses wheelchair basketball bronze – The Toronto Observer

The Canadian men’s wheelchair basketball team were unable to secure a medal at the 2024 Paralympics, falling 75-62 to Germany in their bronze medal match on Saturday.

Thomas Boehme and Matthias Guntner combined for 18 points in a fourth quarter where Germany outscored Canada 28-14, leading them to their first medal in wheelchair basketball since 2008 Paralympics in Beijing.

Patrick Anderson led Canada with a 31-point, 11-rebound double-double in what could potentially be his final Paralympic appearance of his career, and Nikola Goncin was the team’s next best scorer with 10 points.

Boehme was dominant in this game for Germany, finishing with 36 points on 60 per cent shooting, while Guntner finished with a 12-point, 10-rebound double-double.

Canada’s offence started out hot, with Anderson picking up seven consecutive points including a three-pointer to give them a 9-2 lead just over three minutes into the game. Anderson picked up 13 of Canada’s 17 points in the quarter to give them a six-point lead after the first quarter.

Canada maintained their lead throughout the second quarter, but the Germans came alive in the third. Boehme dropped 14 points in the frame as they outscored Canada 20-13 to make it 48-47 heading into the final 10 minutes of play.

Guntner started off the fourth quarter with six consecutive points, then Boehme went on to score the next nine for the Germans while holding Canada to just five points through the first seven minutes of the period.

Anderson and Nikola Goncic would eventually respond with back-to-back three pointers to cut the defecit to eight points, but that’s as close as Canada would get.

Despite this loss, Canada’s hopes of winning a medal in wheelchair basketball are still alive, as the women’s team will take on China in their bronze medal match tomorrow morning at 4:30 AM.

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