BEIJING, Dec. 23 (Xinhua) -- The Zhejiang Lions beat the Nanjing Monkey Kings 101-88 and climbed to the top of the Chinese Basketball Association league (CBA) as the team notched its third consecutive victory in the 21st round of 2024-25 CBA regular season.
The Zhejiang Lions tied the Monkey Kings 49-49 before the third quarter. In the third quarter, the Lions had a double-digit advantage, but the Monkey Kings narrowed the gap to seven before the last quarter.
However, the Zhejiang Lions gathered momentum to take the victory by good defensive plays.
Nathan Knight of the Lions showed his dominance over the game after bagging 32 points and 22 rebounds. Ty Jacob Leaf also finished a double-double with 21 points and 16 rebounds for Nanjing.
The Shanxi Loongs suffered a 128-121 defeat against the Xinjiang Flying Tigers.
Shanxi took a 54-53 lead at halftime. In the third quarter, Xinjiang had a 19-2 run midway and led by 16 points before the final period.
Shanxi kept chasing on the scoreline and Brandon Goodwin's three-pointer lift Shanxi to a 104-101 lead with five minutes to go.
Xinjiang could have turned the game around on the home court before the final whistle, but Elfurat Muhtar missed the final three-pointer attempt and the two teams tied 111-111 after regular time.
At the beginning of the extra time, Quentin Peterson and Xirzat Samat helped Xinjiang take a 117-111 lead after finishing two shots beyond the arc. Although Shanxi cut the deficit to two, it had few chances of overtaking Xinjiang.
Li Yanzhe of Xinjiang scored 25 points, plus nine rebounds and three blocks. In Shanxi side, Goodwin pocketed a game-high 38 points.
Elsewhere, the Beijing Royal Fighters saw off the Shenzhen Leopards 109-95, the Liaoning Flying Leopards won over the Fujian Sturgeons 104-90, the Guangdong Southern Tigers hammered the Ningbo Rockets 107-72, the Shandong Heroes defeated the Qingdao Eagles 92-83, the Shanghai Sharks smashed the Jilin Northeast Tigers 138-107, the Sichuan Blue Whales edged the Jiangsu Dragons 99-98, the Tianjin Pioneers rolled past the Beijing Ducks 93-80 and the Zhejiang Golden Bulls cruised past the Guangzhou Loong Lions 120-103. ■
