Following an 88-85 win over Spain that went down to the wire on Friday, the Canadian men's basketball team finishes with an unblemished 3-0 record to end group play, securing their spot in the Olympic quarterfinals.
The two heavyweights of Group A — also known as the 'Group of Death' for its rounded-out level of skill — went blow for blow to start the game, until Canada broke away in the second quarter, going into the half up by 11.
With this being a must win for Spain, they were not going down without a fight. They clawed their way back into contention by narrowing the gap to two in the fourth but could not get over the hump.
A key factor in holding the lead for Canada was when Toronto Raptor RJ Barrett hit a dagger three in the final minute to extend his team's lead to five.
It turned into a nail-biting, dramatic finish as free throws were needed to close out the final seconds. However, Spain earned a chance to tie with a half-court buzzer beating shot but could not find the mesh.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander lead the team in scoring with 20 points while Andrew Nembhard contributed 18 off the bench from 8-of-10 shooting.
It wasn't long after the clock hit zero before Canadians, and pure basketball fans outside the maple borders, took to twitter to express their awe of the way the Canadian club closed out their final group stage game. Here are some of those reactions:
As mentioned, spectators were blown away by the timing of Barrett's contested three-pointer to extend the Canadian lead:
