The Tall Blacks have been handed a basketball lesson less than a month out from the FIBA World Cup.
New Zealand have been hammered 122-88 by Canada, who are coached by NBA champion Nick Nurse - the man in charge of the Toronto Raptors.
The Tall Blacks were slow out of the blocks, surging on a 13-2 run to lead 13-12 midway through the first quarter.
But Canada quickly extended on the back of some deadly three-point shooting and less than adequate defence by the New Zealanders, with Canada leading by 19 at the first break.
The second quarter saw little change, with Canada scoring at will and the Tall Blacks struggling for their hallmark energy and commitment, leading to an honest and blunt talk from their coach Paul Henare at halftime.
The second half was an improvement, with the New Zealanders at one point reducing the margin back to below 20 after it had ballooned to 30 plus, before a late spree by Canada saw them extend again to round out a disappointing night for the New Zealanders.
Henare was full of praise for the Canadians, who shot were deadly from beyond the arc.
"I don’t know if it was a step backwards, but it was a step up in terms of what we faced in Canada," Henare said.
"The athleticism they bring, the spacing and the intensity they play with took us by surprise and unfortunately we didn’t react in the appropriate manner and allowed too many easy points.
"The beautiful thing is we know exactly what is in front of us now, as much as we talk about it and try and prepare, sometimes there is nothing like a smack in the face and having a bit of a reality check.
"We will take our lashings, evaluate and move forward."
Henare and his coaching staff will have a busy night dissecting the tape and preparing the team to go again on Wednesday against the same opposition in the same venue, knowing that they will need huge improvement across the board.
"There are always things you can improve on at both ends, but the glaringly obvious one is defence and how we leaked so many easy points.
"They shot the ball well but a lot of those shots were unchallenged and at this level, you can expect teams to knock those down.
"Hopefully in terms of reviewing everyone will have that same gut reaction across the board, coaches, players and staff.
"But we will watch the tape and look for clear evidence and wait on judgement until then.”
Amidst a disappointing performance was a remarkable debut for 17-year-old Taine Murray.
The Rosmini student took the court in the final minutes in front of his father and sister who had boarded a flight out of Auckland at the last minute, with Henare aware of how much it meant to a young player that has impressed so much throughout his time in camp and on tour.
"It was something we were discussing as coaches towards the end of the game.
"That first cap is a special moment and while the game is not one he will remember; the moment is something special with some of his family having made the trip over at the last minute to share it with him."
Newshub.
