MEXICO CITY — For a brief moment it looked like Canada had a chance to capture gold at the FIBA under-18 Women's Americas Championship.

But a strong start quickly burnt out as the United States pulled away in the second quarter en route to an 84-60 victory in the tournament final.

It's the third straight silver for Canada at the event.

"I was really proud of our team tonight, but we played a very tough USA team," said Canadian head coach Claire Meadows.

"We started the game really well, stayed true to who we were, and played with pride and passion. It was a good ending to the tournament for us."

Christina Morra had 13 points and five rebounds as Canada lost its first game at the tournament after winning five straight to reach the championship.

The Canadians held an 18-14 lead after the first quarter, but were outscored by 12 in the second and found themselves down 39-31 at halftime.

Any chance of keeping it close went away in the third as the Americans held Canada to just nine points in the quarter and went into the fourth up 64-40.

American Nalyssa Smith had a game-high 18 points.

Earlier in the day Argentina beat Colombia 62-52 in the third-place match.

Canada is already guaranteed a berth at the 2019 FIBA U19 Women's Basketball World Cup by finishing in the top four in Mexico City.