Team members of Sichuan celebrate with the WCBA trophy after beating Inner Mongolia in Game 3 of the 2022-23 Finals in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, March 12, 2023. (Xinhua/Wang Xi)
Sichuan defeated Inner Mongolia to lift the team's first-ever WCBA trophy, with Han Xu awarded the Finals MVP.
CHENGDU, China, March 12 (Xinhua) -- China's star center Han Xu scored 20 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to help the Sichuan Yuanda Merlot win its first-ever Women's Chinese Basketball Association (WCBA) title here on Sunday.
Sichuan edged defending champion Inner Mongolia Nongxin 83-82 in Game 3 of the Finals, winning the series 2-1, with Han awarded the Finals MVP.
Sichuan started the game aggressively, with Wang Siyu, Gao Song and Li Meng scoring in the paint.
Although Huang Sijing's 3-pointer and Shen Yi's layup helped Inner Mongolia close the gap, Sichuan continued to strengthen their defense and took the first quarter 19-16.
In the middle of the second quarter, Huang Sijing hit a 3-pointer to inspire Inner Mongolia to rally, overtake and extend their lead.
In the second half, Wang Xuemeng and Han Xu hit 3-pointers in succession, but Inner Mongolia's Chen Liyu quickly responded.
The third quarter ended with both teams tied at 63-63.
The scores remained close in the last quarter. When Inner Mongolia lost two key players, Zhang Ru and Huang Sijing, who were fouled out successively, Sichuan took the lead.
In the final moments, Sichuan were one point ahead and had possession of the ball. Inner Mongolia failed to make a foul play and the time ran out.
Sichuan's Li Meng scored a game-high 24 points.
"To win the championship, our entire team put in a lot of effort," said Han Xu, adding, "I will always have a reverent heart towards the championship. We will continue to work hard." ■
