Canada comes from behind for victory

Rowan Barrett (No.) led Canada's comeback (Photo credit: FIBA)Photo Gallery>>(BEIJING, July16) -- Canada came from behind to beat the Republic of Korea (ROK) 79-77 and advanced to the quarterfinals of the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament to remain in the running for a ticket to Beijing .

The ROK held the lead 77-65 with 3:12 remaining, but a last ditch effort by Canada earned the team the final triumph.

"This is a game I will remember until the day I die," said ROK coach Kim Nam-gi.

From a 20-20 tie at after the first quarter, the ROK took the lead with a series of three-pointers, ending the second quarter 49-33. The team scored thirteen three-pointers in total.

Thirty-five-year-old veteran Rowan Barrett of Canada nailed six of nine shots from three-point range on his way to a game-high 22 points. Canada narrowed the gap to 64-59 at the end of the third quarter.

Jermaine Anderson stole the ball from the ROK's Oh Sekeun and put in an easy lay-up with 2:03 left to turn the tide.

Carl English made a free throw after getting fouled, cutting the deficit to 77-72 with 1:42 remaining.

The ROK's Jung Young-sam missed two free throws after being fouled by David Thomas. Later Rowan Barrett scored a three-point shot to cut Korea's advantage to 77-75 with 1:19 left.

Victory for Canada soon followed. The ROK failed to shoot in time, and the ball went back to Canada for a three-pointer by Anderson that finally put Canada ahead.

Canada will compete with Croatia on July 18.