Although the home DJ of Xinjiang men's basketball team rarely plays the song "Good Man," this does not hinder Shandong men's basketball team from winning the New Year's first victory with their tenacious fighting spirit. In the just-concluded away game between Shandong and Xinjiang men's basketball teams, despite the referee's decision-making that made Shandong fans indignant, Shandong men's basketball team overcame difficulties and finally defeated Xinjiang team 111-107, ending their unbeaten home record since the start of the season. It must be said that although Gong Xiaobin has faded out of the arena, his evaluation of the referees is really incisive.
The statistics for both teams in this game are as follows: Shandong High-Speed Team: Marcus Chris 25 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists; Dallas Moore 19 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists; Gao Shiyan 17 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists; Tao Hanlin 11 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist; Yu Dehao 11 points, 2 rebounds, 5 assists; Jamal Gayle 10 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists; Guo Kai 6 points, 9 rebounds, 1 assist; Chen Peidong 5 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist; Xu Mengjun 3 points, 1 rebound; Xie Zhijie 2 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist; Krist Kujaj 2 points, 4 rebounds. Xinjiang Yili Team: Quentin Peterson 34 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists; Qi Lin 17 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists; Li Yanzhe 15 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist; Ilifu Lati Mohetaner 11 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists; Aizimaiti Tuxun 9 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists; Dedrick Lawson 8 points, 9 rebounds, 1 assist; Xierzati Samati 8 points, 2 rebounds; Ashton Higins 3 points, 1 rebound, 4 assists; Zhao Rui 2 points, 1 assist.
Both teams are known for their tough defense. Although Xinjiang played at home, the absence of Abudu Salamu and Zhao Rui's lack of composure, which led to his early ejection, allowed Shandong men's basketball team to take the initiative for most of the time. Originally, Shandong men's basketball team's New Year's victory should not have been so difficult, but the referee's decision-making was really speechless, making it meaningless to evaluate the game from a technical and tactical perspective. If Zhao Rui's ejection was self-inflicted by chasing and attacking the referee, then the ejections of Shandong men's basketball team's Chris, Guo Kai, and Gayle showed the referee's painstaking efforts. Statistics show that Xinjiang team got 39 free throw opportunities in this game, while Shandong men's basketball team only had 25. The referee's decision-making throughout the game was not only obviously biased, but also disrupted the rhythm of the game. Shandong men's basketball team's victory under such circumstances is indeed commendable.
I believe that after watching this game, Shandong fans miss Gong Xiaobin a bit. Of course, it's not about his on-site coaching ability. In fact, Qiu Biao's command this season has been very good. Instead, it's about the deterrence against referees. I can even be sure that if Gong Xiaobin were coaching, even in an away game, the referees would not have made such decisions, otherwise the officials at the technical table could still maintain their composure without changing their expressions. Gong Xiaobin once commented on the referees: "Blowing the whistle aimlessly, making mistakes one after another." This game completely confirmed Gong Xiaobin's evaluation. Shandong men's basketball team is really something; the referees worked so hard, yet they didn't let them get the winning prize from the Xinjiang team.