TORONTO, ON (November 14, 2017) - Canada Basketball's Men's High Performance Program is pleased to announce the preliminary list for the first window of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 Americas Qualifiersin Halifax and Dominican Republic.

The Scotiabank Centre in downtown Halifax will host the first Senior Men's National Team home game as Canada opens the qualifying process on Friday, November 24, 2017 against Bahamas with tip-off scheduled for 8:00 pm AST.

Tickets for the event are on sale now through Ticket Atlantic and start from as low as $10 for students and youth.

After leading Canada at the the FIBA AmeriCup 2017 in Argentina this past summer, head coach Roy Rana is back behind the bench for the first of two FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 Qualifiers windows (November 2017 and February 2018).  Joining Rana for the will be assistant coaches Michael Meeks, Jack Sikma, Dave Smart and Nathaniel Mitchell.

"We are excited and honored to begin our journey towards the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 in China," said Roy Rana, Head Coach.  "This group of young men embody the passion and sacrifice needed to be successful in international competition."

"I admire their commitment to Canada and I hope all Canadians will support us loudly in Halifax and across the country," Rana said.

Following Friday's game, Canada will travel to Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic for a showdown against the 17th ranked team in the world.  Tipoff is scheduled for Monday, November 27 at 8:00 PM from Arena del Cibao Oscar Gobaira.

Canada's pursuit of a FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 berth begins with the aforementioned Americas Qualifiers where 16 teams will compete for seven World Cup spots.

Canada will face Bahamas, Dominican Republic and the United States Virgin Islands in Group D with each team facing the other three teams on a home and away basis.

The FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 Qualifiers will see 80 countries do battle over a 2-year period to qualify 31 national teams for the top national team competition taking place from August 31-September 15, 2019.

Canada's Senior Men's National team is currently ranked 8th in the Americas and 25th globally.

Training camp is closed to the public.  Media are invited to post-practice scrums on the following dates. Please RSVP to mwalker@basketball.ca.

MEDIA AVAILABILITY

Tuesday, November 21
2:15 p.m. Gym Opens
2:30 p.m. Availability

Wednesday, November 22
2:15 p.m. Gym Opens
2:30 p.m. Availability

Friday, November 24
1:25 p.m. Gym Opens
1:30 p.m. Availability

*All times are AST and subject to change

The full staff list, roster and schedule can be found below. Follow Canada Basketball on Twitter for game streaming details and live game coverage.

2017 SMNT NOVEMBER WORLD CUP AMERICAS QUALIFIER PRELIMINARY LIST

2017 SMNT STAFF LIST

2017 SMNT SCHEDULE

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