In the 33rd round of the CBA regular season, Beijing Men's Basketball Team lost 91-94 at home to Guangsha Men's Basketball Team. Although it was only a narrow defeat by 3 points, Beijing's record dropped out of the top eight after the game. However, what is more terrifying than the loss is the remarks made by Beijing head coach Xu Limin after the game, which are simply too "abstract". If no adjustments are made and things continue as they are, Beijing's morale will be completely gone.
This match was the second encounter between the two teams this season. Beijing had already lost to Guangsha once in their first meeting, so they were well-prepared for tonight's game. Before the game, they announced that three key players, Zeng Fanbo, Lei Meng, and Omore, would return to the court in an attempt to challenge the league leaders and seek revenge against Guangsha. However, in the first quarter, Beijing struggled against Guangsha's relentless offensive onslaught. Zhou Qi became a mere decoration under the basket, with Guangsha players constantly attacking and "naming" him. Beijing trailed by 11 points going into the second quarter. In the second quarter, Beijing's offense improved, but Guangsha always managed to respond, leaving Beijing trailing by 12 points at halftime.
After changing sides for the second half, Beijing increased their defensive intensity and capitalized on Guangsha's consecutive turnovers to counterattack effectively. They made up the 12-point deficit in this quarter, ending the third quarter tied at 68-68. In the decisive fourth quarter, Beijing once took the lead and maintained it for a long time. However, with Brown hitting two difficult three-pointers in succession and Sun Minghui using his individual ability to repeatedly step up to the free-throw line, Beijing ultimately lost by 3 points to Guangsha, suffering a double defeat in the season.
In the fourth quarter of this game, if Beijing could have played more steadily and had a more reasonable lineup combination, they might have been able to knock off the league leaders. However, Fang Shuo's low-level mistakes were indeed too costly, coupled with Zhou Qi being completely outplayed in the paint, resulting in Beijing losing 8 rebounds in the game. A direct comparison of the inside data between the two teams shows that Guangsha's Hu Jinqiu scored 27 points with 6 rebounds and 2 assists, while Beijing's Zhou Qi had 15 points and 3 rebounds, with Hu Jinqiu dominating Zhou Qi in every aspect.
Although Beijing was once considered a strong contender for the championship at the beginning of the season, they now have a record of 20 wins and 12 losses, ranking ninth, failing to even maintain a spot in the top eight, which is truly disheartening! Moreover, after this game, Beijing has suffered a three-game losing streak. With almost all the main players assembled, except for Chen Yingjun, Beijing still failed to stop their downward trend. Objectively speaking, people's expectations for Zhou Qi were too high at the beginning of the season. Although Zhou Qi is an excellent inside player, his frequent injuries and lack of unique strength mean he is also an overestimated player.
After the game, Beijing head coach Xu Limin said in an interview: "It's really a pity that we didn't seize the opportunity in the final moments of today's game. I believe we have the strength to win this game, but there were still some issues with our ball handling in the crucial moments that we need to continue to improve upon. Even though the opponent is the top team in the league, I think if we can resolve these problems, we will get better and better. Looking at the whole game, we did not perform well in rebounding, allowing the opponent to grab 19 offensive rebounds, which put us in a very passive situation. These are the issues we need to address moving forward."
Coach Xu Limin continued his post-game "spiritual victory method," saying surprising things after each loss recently, such as being satisfied with the players, the team, and the tactics being fine... After tonight's loss, he again claimed that they have the strength to win the game and that they will get better and better, despite Beijing already being on a three-game losing streak. And isn't it Coach Xu himself who sets up the key plays? Perhaps the key issue with the team's losses is the coach himself. If Coach Xu continues to console himself after losses like this, the team's morale will truly be gone.