On January 18th, Beijing time, the 32nd round of the CBA regular season saw seven intense battles in one night. Shanxi, Shandong, Beijing, and Shenzhen faced tough opponents ranked close to them, while Liaoning, Beikong, and Zhejiang had relatively easier opponents. That night, Shenzhen completed a perfect 22-point revenge, while Shanxi, Qingdao, Zhejiang, and Beikong were also big winners. However, Liaoning and Beijing had a turbulent time as they were disrupted by the referees' excessive involvement in the game. Ultimately, Liaoning narrowly escaped defeat, while Beijing became the biggest loser.
Shenzhen defeated Jilin 118-96, securing another crucial victory in their pursuit of a playoff spot and moving up to 13th place in the rankings. In their previous encounter with Jilin, Shenzhen suffered a disappointing loss due to their inability to defend against Jones and Zhou Peng's poor performance in the fourth quarter (Zhou Peng did not play in the first three quarters). This time, Zhou Peng did not take unnecessary risks and entered the game early in the second quarter, scoring 7 points on 4-of-3 shooting to help the team establish a 39-20 lead over Jilin in the second quarter, leading by 25 points at halftime.
The 25-point halftime lead was similar to their previous match, but this time Shenzhen did not give Jilin a chance to make a comeback. In the second half, Shenzhen maintained control of the game, and when they extended the lead to 33 points in the early stages of the fourth quarter, the game lost all suspense. The key to victory was that Shenzhen managed to contain Jones (with significant contributions from Bai Haotian and Lu Pengyu), allowing him only 11 points.
Liaoning narrowly escaped defeat with a 113-107 victory over Ningbo. The game was not as easy as Liaoning fans had anticipated. Ningbo, playing at home, was unafraid of Liaoning and engaged in physical confrontations. They also relied on the referees' decisions, earning more free throws than Liaoning. Throughout the first three quarters, Ningbo and Liaoning remained neck and neck, with Liaoning unable to create a significant lead, and even trailing by 2 points at the end of the third quarter.
In the crucial fourth quarter, Yang Ming did not dare to use Yan Shouqi or experiment with a three-guard lineup. Instead, he chose to rely on experienced veterans. Once again, Han Dejun, Li Xiaoxu, and O.J. Mayo saved Yang Ming. In the final quarter, Han Dejun scored 9 crucial points and grabbed 9 rebounds on 5-of-4 shooting, especially with two powerful dunks in the decisive moments that turned the tide of the game. Under Han Dejun's leadership, Liaoning outscored Ningbo 13-8 in the last six minutes to secure a hard-fought victory.
Despite having 13 fewer free throws than their opponents, Liaoning managed to grind out a tough win. Han Dejun with 17 points and 14 rebounds, Li Xiaoxu with 8 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists, and O.J. Mayo with 34 points and 6 rebounds were instrumental in the victory. Key moments still proved the value of experienced veterans, but Yang Ming must be feeling the pressure.
Liaoning's recent victories have been hard-fought, primarily due to their poor defense against opponents' three-point shooting. They allowed Shanghai to hit 16 threes and Ningbo to hit 13. To protect Han Dejun's stamina, Liaoning opted for zone defense, sacrificing some perimeter defense. However, in critical moments, Liaoning still relied on Han Dejun to solve problems, which seemed like an unsolvable dilemma.
While Liaoning narrowly avoided defeat, things were not looking optimistic for Beijing. In the previous round, Beijing suffered a humiliating 27-point loss to Beikong. To avoid a losing streak, Zhou Qi, who was sick with a cold and fever, chose to make a surprise return to face Yang Hanshen. However, Zhou Qi was unexpectedly ejected after being called for two technical fouls before the game was even halfway through, leaving Beijing in disarray and leaving the scouts who came to evaluate Yang Hanshen speechless. It was rare for Zhou Qi to play through his injury, providing a live example for Yang Hanshen, who is about to enter the NBA draft. The dialogue between the current top center in the CBA and the rising star was disrupted by the referees.
Zhou Qi was ejected in the opening stages of the second half after becoming dissatisfied with the referee's failure to call a foul when he was blocked and knocked down by Yang Hanshen during an offensive play. Zhou Qi argued with the referee during a dead ball situation.
Initially, Zhou Qi remained relatively calm, but as the conversation escalated, he became agitated. Even after being assessed a technical foul by referee number 59, he continued to complain and berate the officials, quickly earning another T and being ejected from the game. This incident became the most controversial moment of the match.
Why was Zhou Qi so agitated? The commentator, Zeng Lingxu, offered his perspective, suggesting that both teams had engaged in excessive underhanded tactics, with four to five instances of actions such as turning and thrusting hips, hand movements, and waist actions going uncalled by the referees.
Zhou Qi's ejection became a turning point in the game. With Zhou Qi on the court in the first half, Yang Hanshen and Weatherspoon were cautious, with Yang Hanshen scoring only 4 points and 2 rebounds, while Zhou Qi dominated with 10 points and 2 rebounds. After Zhou Qi's departure, Yang Hanshen and Weatherspoon no longer had a formidable opponent. In the second half, Yang Hanshen added another 8 points and 8 rebounds, although his shooting percentage remained low, his attempts increased significantly. Weatherspoon scored 14 points in the third quarter and amassed 19 points in the second half, with most of his points coming in the paint, causing significant trouble for Beijing's interior defense.
Ultimately, Qingdao defeated Beijing BAIC 99-89 relatively easily, handing Beijing their second consecutive loss while securing their own third consecutive victory. On the leaderboard, Beijing has been overtaken by Guangdong and Xinjiang, who have played one and two fewer games respectively (all three teams currently have the same points). By the end of the second stage, Beijing is likely to remain in ninth place.
Qingdao currently has 54 points, tied with Liaoning and Shandong, but due to their inferior head-to-head record against these teams, they are temporarily ranked fifth, dropping one position from the previous round. This can be attributed to Shandong, who suffered an unexpected upset in their battle against Tongxi, losing 89-98.
This battle caught Shandong fans off guard, as on paper, Shandong should have been stronger than Tongxi in terms of both overall strength and interior toughness. However, Shandong lost to themselves, with a meager 36.4% shooting percentage throughout the game, exposing their lack of a stable scoring option and team core in critical moments. Two players deserve criticism: Gaili, who recorded a triple-double with 24 points, 11 rebounds, and 13 assists, may have impressive stats, but he took many unnecessary shots, converting only 6 out of 22 attempts, with a dismal shooting percentage. Moreover, Gaili's emotions were not calm throughout the game, constantly complaining about the referees, affecting the entire team; the other is Chris, who was suspended for accumulating nine technical fouls and did not play in this game, which was a huge loss for Shandong. Although the other big foreign player in the interior, Kumajie, performed well defensively and offensively, replacing Chris with a double-double of 19 points and 12 rebounds, Kumajie is essentially a blue-collar big man with limited independent offensive capabilities. This led to Shandong having only Gaili, who loves to complain, and Gao Suyan, who was in poor form, to score in the clutch moments, with less efficiency than before. On the contrary, Tongxi is known for their strong finishing ability in the fourth quarter because they have Lin Wei and Guo Haowen, two local sharpshooters, and the versatile big man Life.
In this game, Lin Wei scored 24 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 assists, making several strong shots. Life scored 26 points and 8 rebounds. When Guo Haowen was struggling, Tongxi's third foreign player, Harris, stepped up, scoring 21 points and 5 rebounds. These three players carried Tongxi's offense, demonstrating a stronger desire to win than Shandong, leaving Qiu Biao convinced.
Shandong's upset benefited Shanxi, who were able to widen the gap in points and maintain their second-place ranking.
In this round, Shanxi engaged in an intense physical battle with Shanghai. Shanxi took a 57-50 lead in the first half thanks to better interior defense and smoother teamwork. In the third quarter, Shanghai, led by Lofton and Li Hongquan, who scored 13 points in the quarter, closed the gap with a 29-22 quarter score, evening the game at the end of the third quarter.
In the crucial fourth-quarter showdown, Pan Jiang made a bold move, abandoning the usual fourth-quarter starters Liu Chuanxing and Goodwin in the final six minutes and focusing on Diyal
