Jamaal Franklin (2nd L) of Shanghai Sharks breaks through during the semifinal match between Shanghai Sharks and Zhejiang Lions at the 2021-2022 season of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) league in Nanchang, east China's Jiangxi Province, April 15, 2022. (Xinhua/Peng Zhaozhi)
NANCHANG, China, April 15 (Xinhua) -- Sun Minghui notched a game-high 24 points to help the Zhejiang Lions prevail over the Shanghai Sharks 106-96 for their second consecutive win in the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) playoffs' best-of-five semifinals here on Friday.
Facing Shanghai's strong defense in the first quarter, Zhejiang took a 32-26 lead thanks to two three-pointers from Zhu Junlun and Zhao Yanhao respectively. Though Shanghai delivered a 7-0 run in the second quarter, Zhejiang's defense in the paint stopped further Shanghai attacks. With Ren Junwei's scores under the basket before the half-time whistle, Zhejiang took a slender 54-52 lead at the break.
After the interval, Shanghai put more pressure on Sun to restrict Zhejiang's attacks, but Zhejiang leveraged Shanghai's turnovers to increase the gap to 82-73. In the last period, Jamaal Franklin and Wang Zhelin launched an aggressive attack to cut the deficit to eight points. However, without much time left, the "twin towers" had to witness Shanghai's failure.
In addition to Sun, both Zhu and Hu Jinqiu grabbed 15 points for Zhejiang. On the other side, Wang pocketed a team-high 22 points and five rebounds for Shanghai.
With Shanghai's leading players Liu Zheng and Luo Hanchen absent with injury, head coach Li Chunjiang paid tribute to the team's perseverance.
"However, we were weak in two aspects. We did not do well in rebounds and made too many turnovers. During the intense battle, we were not as active as the other side," said Li.
The next game between Zhejiang and Shanghai takes place on Sunday. ■
Jarrod Jones (R) of Zhejiang Lions goes up for a layup during the semifinal match between Shanghai Sharks and Zhejiang Lions at the 2021-2022 season of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) league in Nanchang, east China's Jiangxi Province, April 15, 2022. (Xinhua/Peng Zhaozhi)
Dai Hao (C) of Shanghai Sharks dunks during the semifinal match between Shanghai Sharks and Zhejiang Lions at the 2021-2022 season of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) league in Nanchang, east China's Jiangxi Province, April 15, 2022. (Xinhua/Peng Zhaozhi)
Jarrod Jones (R front) of Zhejiang Lions competes during the semifinal match between Shanghai Sharks and Zhejiang Lions at the 2021-2022 season of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) league in Nanchang, east China's Jiangxi Province, April 15, 2022. (Xinhua/Peng Zhaozhi)
Noah Vonleh (R) of Shanghai Sharks blocks Sun Minghui of Zhejiang Lions during the semifinal match between Shanghai Sharks and Zhejiang Lions at the 2021-2022 season of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) league in Nanchang, east China's Jiangxi Province, April 15, 2022. (Xinhua/Peng Zhaozhi)
