Meagher and the Canucks played Yugoslavia next - another respected basketball nation and winners of the 1978 world championship and 1980 Olympic Games. "When you look at the list, it was crazy." Nothing compares to it "They had Barkley and Dawkins, who I played with," Meagher told the St. Meagher was also Dawkins' teammate at Duke. Triano scored the game's final points to finish with 29. The guard scored 13 of his 15 points in the second half including a lay-up with 32 seconds left to seal the victory and prompt the crowd into chanting "Na, na, na, na, hey, hey, hey, goodbye!" They turned up the defensive intensity and scored on the fast break to close within 69-64 in the last 10 minutes of the game.īut that's as close as the Americans would get.įoul trouble took first-half stars Barkley and Meagher out of the game and it was Canada's Eli Pasquale who shined the brightest in the second half.
The United States came out of the locker room taking a page out of Canada's playbook. The host nation took a 53-42 lead into halftime with Triano scoring a game-high 24 points and Meagher adding 14. The Canadians ended the first half on a 17-7 scoring run topped by Triano's buzzer-beater that brought the crowd to their feet. Meanwhile, Malone made his only appearance late in the first half, scoring just a single point. (Harry How/Getty Images)ĭonohue's mix of zone and man-to-man defence along with a full-court press worked to perfection.īut the Americans responded by cutting the deficit to one to make it 36-35 with just over 3.5 minutes remaining in the first half.īarkley was held in check, scoring most of his points at the charity stripe but established his presence in the paint as a shot blocker and rebounder. Jay Triano, pictured here at the 2015 Pan Am Games, was a member of the Canadian men's basketball team which upset the powerhouse American squad en route to winning gold at the 1983 Summer Universiade. Right from the get go, the fans made their presence felt, booing the Americans every time they had possession and roaring with each Canadian basket made.Ĭanada bolted out of the gate behind strong starts from Danny Meagher and Triano - crashing the offensive glass and pushing the pace off turnovers to score easy transition points. In front of 10,000 fans at the Universiade Pavillion in Edmonton, Canada rode the support of the home crowd to defeat the United States 85-77 and punch its ticket to the final. "I joke with the players, I played in four World University Games and they're every two years, so I was a student for eight years," Triano told The Canadian Press.Įight players from the team were drafted to the NBA, but perhaps even more shocking were the omissions of future first-round picks Leo Rautins and Stewart Granger from the roster. Some notable members included future national team head coach and team captain Jay Triano and three-time NBA champion Bill Wennington.
The World University Games team was the core of the 1984 Olympic squad and mostly comprised of players from Canadian collegiate schools - including a healthy representation from the University of Victoria, which was in the middle of seven straight national championships. With Jack Donohue as head coach of the men's national basketball team, Canada won its only Universiade gold in 1983 and had a pair of fourth-place finishes at the 19 Olympics. He even coached Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in high school.Ĭanada won its only Universiade gold in 1983 and had a pair of fourth-place finishes at the 19 Olympics with the New Yorker in charge.
The American-born head coach was at the helm of Canada's national team for 16 years before calling it a career in 1988. Meanwhile, the Canadian squad had a respectable 4-1 record under the guidance of the late Jack Donohue. The Americans were 5-0 while scoring just under 120 points per contest with an average margin of victory of 59 points. Heading into their semifinal matchup against Canada, the United States lived up to the hype and looked unbeatable. Just as the Soviets dominated the Olympic hockey scene - winning six of the past seven gold medals heading into Lake Placid - the Americans were the class of the basketball world and seeking a fifth straight Universiade gold medal in Edmonton. Willis was drafted 11th overall a year later and played 21 seasons in the NBA. Charles Barkley went on to have a Hall of Fame career in the NBA after representing the United States in the 1983 Summer Universiade.
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