On January 4th, Beijing time, the 26th round of the CBA regular season saw the defending champion Liaoning play away against Jilin. In this game, Zhao Jiwei returned and the team's offensive state was hot from the start, launching a 16-5 offensive and then taking full control, with the point difference constantly widening to establish an advantage of more than 30 points. Jilin once narrowed the score, but Liaoning re-opened the gap and eventually won 102-81.
After Jilin lost Jones, their strength dropped significantly. At first, they could still compete with Liaoning, but they quickly fell into a passive position. Wang Lanchen hit a three-pointer for Liaoning, followed by continuous scoring, and Willis scored in a counterattack to take a 16-5 lead. Wu Changze hit a three-pointer to stop the bleeding, but Liaoning continued to score, and Jilin couldn't keep up with the rhythm, and the point difference was further widened. Kizlink hit a three-pointer, Zhao Jiwei responded with a three-pointer, Foger broke through to score, and the point difference widened to over 20 points. Kizlink hit another three-pointer, and Liaoning led 33-14 at the end of the first quarter.
In the second quarter, Liaoning's offensive momentum remained strong, with Yan Shouqi hitting two consecutive three-pointers to directly widen the point difference to 30 points. Jia Hao hit a three-pointer to stop the bleeding, and Jilin's shooting felt somewhat revived, able to score continuously, but Yan Shouqi hit another three-pointer, maintaining a fiery momentum to help the team maintain the lead. Fu Hao also scored under the basket, Big Bear scored on free throws, Fu Hao continued to score under the basket, and Kizlink grasped the three-pointer, and Liaoning led 63-37 at halftime.
After changing sides again, Liaoning's offensive state remained excellent, firmly controlling the initiative on the court, Zhao Jiwei broke through to score, and the point difference widened to over 30 points again. Jia Hao hit a three-pointer, Big Bear made a 2+1, and Jilin successfully reduced the point difference slightly. In the last quarter, Jilin continued to score, and Liaoning also relaxed somewhat, Zhao Jiahao hit a three-pointer, and the score came to 64-81. After that, Jilin failed to continue their momentum, while Liaoning re-widened the point difference to over 20 points, and the game lost its suspense. In the end, Liaoning avenged Jilin with a 102-81 victory.
In this game, Liaoning's offense was multi-flowering, with Yan Shouqi off the bench hitting 6 out of 10 three-pointers for 20 points, performing outstandingly; Zhao Jiwei returned with 7 points and 13 assists; Foger scored 19 points, and Han Dejun, Willis, and Fu Hao all scored 14 points.
Without Jones, Jilin couldn't keep up at all, relying only on the starting double foreign aid of Kizlink and Big Bear to score, combining for 45 points, but still unable to change the situation.