Team Canada tops Great Britain in double-OT thriller

Face Japan in the quarterfinals on Wednesday

OTTAWA (Wheelchair Basketball Canada) Arinn Young hit a free throw with seven seconds remaining, and Team Canada topped Great Britain 92-91 in a double-overtime thriller in women’s action at the 2026 IWBF Wheelchair Basketball World Championships on Tuesday at Carleton University.

With the victory, Canada advances to Wednesday’s quarterfinals where they will meet Japan at 2:45 p.m. EDT at TD Arena.

“Honestly, I’m so proud of this group,” Young said. “We knew this was going to be a really tough game. We stuck to the game plan the whole time; we stuck to what the coaches were saying to us and most importantly, we stuck together, and I think that’s why we won that game.”

Young led the Senior Women’s National Team with a game-high 32 points, 10 rebounds and five assists, while Kady Dandeneau chipped in a triple-double with 27 points, 16 rebounds and 12 assists.

Elise Froese added 12 points and two rebounds, and Mercy Nyakundi contributed 10 points and seven rebounds off the bench as Team Canada finished atop Group A with a perfect 5-0 record.

As a team, Canada shot 45 per cent from the field and held a 55–37 advantage on the glass, including 15 offensive rebounds.

“This was a crazy game; we went in wanting to win, of course. There were so many ups and downs, and we stayed together through all of it,” said Puisand Lai, who added three points and seven rebounds in the win.

“We pushed through, and I’m so proud of our team.”

Canada battled through a back-and-forth third quarter, heading into the final frame with Great Britain holding a narrow 49–48 lead.

Dandeneau scored eight in the quarter as Team Canada controlled the glass, holding a 34–22 rebounding advantage through three quarters while shooting 44 per cent from the field.

The SWNT led by four, 34-30 at the break.

Canada shot 50 per cent from the field at halftime and scored 10 points from the bench through two periods.

Dandenau had a 11 after two quarters while Elodie Tessier, Young and Nyakundi each added six points in the opening 20 minutes.

The SWNT opened the first period strong with a 4-0 run and led 14-8 after 10 minutes.

Defensively, Canada held Great Britain to just 3-for-17 shooting from the field, while forcing four turnovers in the opening 10 minutes.

Canada also controlled the glass, holding a 14–8 rebounding advantage while shooting 46 per cent from the field.

Complete stats from Tuesday’s win are available here.

In men’s action, Team Canada fell 78-67 to Argentina in the classification round at the World Championships.

The Senior Men’s National Team battled until the final minutes at Carleton University but couldn’t hold off a fourth-quarter push from Argentina.

“Tough loss, guys played with all their heart – left it all out there,” said Tyler Miller. “We lost. We didn’t have enough today. A bunch of little things didn’t work out the way we wanted.”

Nik Goncin had a team-high 23 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists, while Colin Higgins added 17 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds.