Canada thrashed France 95-65 to open their Basketball World Cup campaign with a statement victory on Friday.
The French won silver at the Tokyo Olympics two years ago but they met their match against a Canadian team packed with NBA talent.
Canada outscored their opponents 25-8 in the third quarter to run away with the game in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led Canada in scoring with 27 points, followed by Kelly Olynyk with 18, and Dillon Brooks and Nickeil Alexander-Walker with 12 apiece.
Evan Fournier scored 21 points for France, who now take on Latvia on Sunday with their tournament hanging in the balance.
New York Knicks small forward Fournier told beIN Sports that his team “took a real beating”.
“We didn’t really manage to get into our pattern because of their defensive pressure,” he said.
“They pushed us away, whether on the outside lines or inside. They pushed us away and we couldn’t get into it.”
Canada lost key guard Jamal Murray on the eve of the tournament when he withdrew saying his body needed more time to recover after winning the NBA title with the Denver Nuggets last season.
