HANGZHOU, Oct. 23 (Xinhua) -- Antonio Blakeney's 30 points secured Jiangsu Dragons a hard-fought 87-80 victory over Qingdao Eagles, while Nanjing Monkey Kings edged Shanghai Sharks in a close 125-122 match in the sixth round of the 2022-2023 Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) here on Sunday.
Trailing by 74-81 with 50 seconds on the clock, Qingdao sent on Duop Reath and saw the hope of catching up as the Australian closed the gap to five points with a powerful dunk. Resorting to fouls with less than 30 seconds to time, Qingdao saw their hope dashed with Jiangsu players giving a solid performance on the free throw line. Although Wang Ruize missed his 3-point attempt, Qingdao continued to foul to stop the clock but had to swallow the defeat as the buzzer went off.
Blakeney scored a game-high 30 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, while Wu Guanxi contributed a double-double of 15 points and 11 rebounds. Reath nailed 23 points and nine rebounds and Wang added 14 points for Qingdao.
Blakeney and Zhao Shuaizhou powered a ferocious 18-0 opening for Jiangsu with marksman accuracy, as the Dragons kept smashing the Eagles' defense for a convincing 33-15 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Reath scored 13 points in the first seven minutes of the second quarter to help Qingdao cut the deficit to 11 points, but the Dragons quickly recovered from their misses, with Liu Zhixuan's 3-pointer expanding Jiangsu's lead to 52-37 at halftime.
After the interval, pouring 3-pointers from Zhao Jiayi and Wang cut the deficit to nine for Qingdao, while Blakeney and Cui Xiaolong soon helped Jiangsu maintain a 66-53 advantage for the last 12 minutes and managed to deny Qingdao's comeback efforts in the last seconds.
Sunday saw another close match when Nanjing Monkey Kings edged Shanghai Sharks in intense overtime. Quentin Peterson scored a 3-pointer to put Nanjing ahead 125-122 and leave Shanghai with only one second on the clock. As Romelo Trimble missed his chance to force another overtime, Nanjing took its third victory in six matches.
In the other matches on Sunday, Guangdong Southern Tigers cruised past Tianjin Pioneers 99-83, Jilin Northeast Tigers edged Sichuan Blue Whales 94-92, and Shandong Heroes defeated Xinjiang Flying Tigers 105-92. ■
