Top 5 performances from the opening day of the U17 World Cup

ROSARIO/SANTA FE (FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2018) - The opening day of the FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2018 lived up to the hype, with a number of enthralling games and world-class performances.

In no particular order, we look at the top 5 standout individual performances from the first day of the tournament.

1) Andre Curbelo - Puerto Rico

It was a momentous day for Puerto Rico's Andre Curbelo, as he achieved a life-long goal of not only competing against, but beating, European competition, and to top if all off, he also had one of the top performances of the opening day. Curbelo went off for 20 points, seven rebounds and seven assists, adding four steals for good measure, leading his squad to a 76-68 victory over Turkey.

2) Siriman Kanoute - Mali

The top individual scoring performance from Day 1, Mali's Siriman Kanoute went off for a 37-point outing, adding six rebounds, five assists and four steals before fouling out, in what was the fourth best scoring performance in the history of the U17 World Cup. It would not be enough for Mali, as they went down to Serbia, 89-77,  thanks to another impressive individual performance (see number 4, below). Kanoute is no stranger to scoring outbursts, having gone off for 50 in the FIBA U16 Africa Championships 2017. 

3) Addison Patterson - Canada

Canada's Addison Patterson came into the tournament as one of our 'Sensational Seven', and for good reason. Against FIBA U16 European Championship 2017 runners up, Montenegro, Patterson went for 20 points on 50% shooting, along with five rebounds and three steals in just 22 minutes, using his athleticism for some jaw-dropping dunks (and even more impressive misses), whilst drawing fouls as the Montenegrins struggled to contain him.

4) Dorde Pazin - Serbia

It was Serbia's Dorde Pazin who played spoiler to Siriman Kanoute, who was on the verge of leading Mali to one of the biggest upsets in U17 World Cup history. Pazin had other ideas. With Serbia having been trailing, Pazin went for seven three-pointers in the second half - including four in the final 3:30 minutes of the third quarter to turn the game around. His seven threes finishes one shy of the U17 World Cup record for three-pointers in a game. Pazin totaled 29 points, adding four rebounds, two assists and a steal.

5) Kai Sotto - Philippines

The Philippines big man, Kai Sotto, came into the tournament with plenty of hype and showed why with his performance against Croatia. At 7ft 1in (2.16m), Sotto hauled in 12 rebounds, 5 on the offensive end, to go with his 23 points and two blocks, all whilst only missing five shots. It would not be enough for the Philippines to overcome Croatia, but it no doubt served notice that the Filipino side, with Sotto manning the middle, will be no pushover in the tournament.