BEIJING, May 10 (Xinhua) -- The Shenzhen Aviators advanced into the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) semifinals after beating the Zhejiang Golden Bulls 95-91 in the playoffs here on Sunday.
He Xining, the MVP of the 2025-2026 CBA regular season, buried four 3-pointers in the last quarter, leading Shenzhen to win the best-of-three series.
Entering the second quarter at 20-20, Shenzhen delivered a 17-6 run before Zhejiang cut the deficit to 48-42 at halftime. Shenzhen extended the lead to 15 points with 3 minutes 28 seconds left in the third, but Zhejiang refused to accept a rout and fought back hard.
The two teams engaged in an even more heated battle in the last quarter. Although Shenzhen only scored four points in the last three minutes, Zhejiang struggled from beyond the arc and failed to complete the comeback.
He Xining scored 23 points to lead five Shenzhen players in double-digit scoring, Terquavion Smith contributed a triple-double with 14 points, 12 rebounds and 13 assists. Zhejiang's Cheng Shuaipeng had a game-high 25 points.
In the other match on Sunday, defending champion Zhejiang Guangsha Lions edged the Shanxi Brave Dragons 86-81 with decisive free throws in the final seconds, leveling the series 1-1. ■
