Xinjiang beats Shandong to tie 1-1 in CBA playoffs

Xinjiang beat Shandong 119-104, tying the best-of-five first-round playoffs 1-1 of the Chinese Basketball Association league on Sunday.[Photo: CCTV]

Darius Adams and Andray Blatche combined for 53 points to help Xinjiang beat Shandong 119-104, tying the best-of-five first-round playoffs 1-1 of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) league on Sunday.

After the surprising win of underdog Shandong over Xinjiang 95-78 in the opener, the powerhouse Xinjiang made an easy comeback this time. Through solid defense, the hosts led 33-14 in the first quarter and sealed up with a landslide victory.

Adams and Blatche also contributed 16 rebounds, teammate Zhou Qi suffered an ankle injury in the first half and benched the rest of the game.

Ding Yanyuhang, who scored a game-high 43 points for Shandong in the first game, seemed like suffering a cold as he scored 21 points and made five errors in the duel.

In other actions of the day, Guangdong hammered Sichuan 123-99 for a 2-0 lead and the defending champions were cornered into a dangerous situation. Guangdong forced Sichuan to almost give up the game with a gap over 20 points in the third quarter and sealed the victory with ease.

With five players scoring double-digits, especially Zhou Peng who scored a game-high 30 points, Guangdong will make the semifinals with one more win to go.

Thanks to the return of Jimmer Fredette who made 39 points and 10 rebounds, third seed Shanghai beat Shenzhen 107-99 in a see-saw game to tie the series 1-1, the same for Guangsha who defeated Liaoning 118-110 at home.