The CBA league continues with a match between Jiangsu Men's Basketball and Beikong Men's Basketball at the home court of Jiangsu. In the first half, both teams were evenly matched, with Jiangsu always keeping close to the score and even taking the lead. However, in the second half, Beikong Men's Basketball, relying on the strong performance of Li Le, took the lead and gradually widened the gap. The game ended with Jiangsu Men's Basketball losing at home 94:112 to Beikong Men's Basketball.
Liu Xiaoyu hit a three-pointer and Salinger made a strong play under the basket, giving Beikong Men's Basketball a 5:2 start. Subsequently, the offensive efficiency of both teams dropped, with Salinger scoring 2+1 under the basket and Li Le assisting Zhu Songwei in a flying dunk. Jiangsu Men's Basketball had significant problems on both offense and defense, scoring only 5 points in more than 7 minutes. Lin Yanting hit a three-pointer, expanding Beikong Men's Basketball's advantage to 10 points. With the outside shooting struggling to open up, Beikong focused their defense under the basket. Jackson utilized quick transitions on both offense and defense, scoring five points in a row through penetration and outside shooting. The first quarter ended with Jiangsu Men's Basketball temporarily trailing 16:25 at home.
In the second quarter, Li Le received a foul for unsportsmanlike conduct, but Jackson continued his fast breaks, which worked well. After scoring five points in a row, the gap was further narrowed. At a critical moment, Chen Guohao hit a three-pointer from the outside, forming a stalemate between the two teams. Jiangsu Men's Basketball called a timeout to set up targeted defensive positions. After the timeout, Jackson assisted his teammate with an easy dunk under the basket, followed by Wu Yujia scoring another two points in a counterattack. Coach Min Lulei quickly called a timeout. After the timeout, Terres assisted Li Le in scoring 2+1, while Goodwin stole the ball and converted it into a dunk. The first half ended with Jiangsu Men's Basketball miraculously reversing to lead by one point.
Throughout the first half, although Jiangsu Men's Basketball had some pleasant surprises in their lineup setup, there were many shortcomings in their overall offense. Especially with the outside shooting, they basically went cold, causing Beikong Men's Basketball to use a zone defense strategy that troubled Jiangsu. Fortunately, Jackson's personal ability to break down the defense helped the team gradually close the gap. On the other hand, Beikong Men's Basketball played relatively evenly, with commendable performances both inside and outside. However, the team made several low-level mistakes, including losing some defensive rebounds, which Coach Min Lulei found hard to understand. Of course, a one-point difference does not mean much, as the outcome of the game is decided in the second half. Whoever handles the details better has a chance to win the game.
In the second half, Beikong Men's Basketball intensified their attacks under the basket. Liu Xiaoyu, while defending, collided knees with Goodwin and fell to the ground in pain, being carried off the court by his teammates. Controversial calls disrupted the flow of the game. Lin Yanting hit a three-pointer, and Beikong Men's Basketball launched an 8:0 run to slightly widen the score. Jiangsu Men's Basketball, sensing the danger, quickly called a timeout. After the timeout, Zheng Qilong responded with a long-range shot, and Zou Yuchen dunked under the basket. Beikong Men's Basketball once again extended their lead to double digits. Jiangsu Men's Basketball kept making low-level mistakes and had no choice but to call another timeout. Without height under the basket, Jiangsu Men's Basketball frequently lost defensive rebounds, and Li Le broke through for a three-point play, gradually widening the gap in this quarter.
In the decisive final quarter, Li Le maintained his hot hand, with Zou Yuchen scoring another 2+1 under the basket. The big lead subtly changed the players' mentality. Beikong Men's Basketball became more relaxed, with Zou Yuchen blocking Goodwin and Li Le continuing his difficult shots. Jiangsu Men's Basketball took advantage of Beikong's relaxation to make some good transitions, but Li Le's state became unstoppable, with Zhu Songwei hitting a three-pointer, effectively ending the suspense of the game.
For Jiangsu Men's Basketball, the main reasons for their loss are twofold. First, they did not effectively respond to Li Le's strong outburst in the second half. Li Le did not just suddenly explode in this game; he had been maintaining high efficiency in previous games, indicating that the team's pre-game research and preparation were not thorough enough. Second, they lost too many rebounds, with Beikong Men's Basketball grabbing 61 rebounds, including a terrifying 28 offensive rebounds, resulting in too many second-chance points. It was difficult to win in such a situation.
Team statistics:
Jiangsu Men's Basketball had four players scoring in double figures, with Goodwin scoring 24 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists, Jackson scoring 15 points and 5 assists, Thompson scoring 12 points and 10 rebounds, and Ma Guodong scoring 10 points.
Beikong Men's Basketball had five players scoring in double figures, with Li Le scoring 28 points in the second half and a total of 36 points and 5 rebounds, Salinger scoring 19 points, 13 rebounds, and 3 steals, Zou Yuchen scoring 13 points, 13 rebounds, and 2 blocks, Lin Yanting scoring 10 points and 9 assists, Terres scoring 10 points, and Chen Guohao scoring 8 points, 10 rebounds, and 2 blocks.