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Look for former UNLV center Joel Anthony to shoulder much of the low-post load for Canada on Friday night against Carlos Boozer, Dwight Howard and Chris Bosh.
The American national team will tune up for the Olympics in China with a game against the Canadians at the Thomas & Mack Center.
Anthony and his teammates failed to qualify for Beijing at a recent qualifying tournament in Athens when they lost a quarterfinal game against Croatia.
The Canadians were hampered when center Samuel Dalembert, who plays for the Philadelphia 76ers, was booted from the team before a preliminary game against South Korea.
Reasons for the dismissal were unclear, but coach Leo Rautins said it was a team-wide decision.
Anthony averaged eight points and eight rebounds in Greece.
Forward Rowan Barrett, who plays professionally in France, led Canada by averaging 17 points. He shot 9-for-18 from 3-point range. Jermaine Anderson, a guard who plays pro ball in Germany, averaged 11 points.
Canada also has reserve centers Levon Kendall (who plays in Greece) and Jesse Young (who plays in Spain) on its roster.
GO JOEL!! i hope you have a good game. your canadian team will not win, but you have the opportunity to prove you belong with the big boys.