Canadian U18 men's basketball team wins FIBA Americas opener

Andrew Nembhard had 28 points and seven rebounds to lead Canada to a 92-75 win over Argentina on Sunday in both teams' first game of group play at the FIBA under-18 Americas championship in St. Catharines, Ont.

A.J. Lawson and Emanuel Miller added 18 points apiece for the Canadians. Tyrese Samuel had 10 boards.

Juan Ignacio Marcos led Argentina with 23 points, Francisco Caffaro had 22 and Francisco Farabello chipped in with 14.

Chile kicked off the tournament at Meridian Centre with a 74-62 win over Ecuador in the other Group B game earlier in the day.

The United States toppled the the Dominican Republic 105-73 and Puerto Rico downed Panama 84-51 in the Group A games later Sunday.

Canada plays Ecuador Monday night and Chile on Tuesday, with the quarter-finals going on Thursday.

The top four teams from the tournament earn a trip to next summer's World Cup. Canada is the defending U-19 World Cup champion.

Nembhard, a six-foot-four guard from Aurora, Ont., played alongside Canadian star R.J. Barrett at Montverde Academy.

Barrett is not playing at the FIBA Americas tournament. The 17-year-old, who'll play for the Duke Blue Devils next season and is a projected No. 1 pick for the 2019 NBA draft, is in Los Angeles working with skills coach Drew Hanlen.