CBA quarterfinal field completed as Zhejiang, Qingdao advance

Hamed Haddadi (R) of Sichuan Blue Whales competes during the 1st round playoff match between Qingdao Eagles and Sichuan Blue Whales at the 2020-2021 season of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) league in Zhuji, east China's Zhejiang Province, April 17, 2021. (Xinhua/Jiang Han)

ZHUJI, China, April 17 (Xinhua) -- CBA quarterfinal berths were confirmed after the Zhejiang Lions rallied past the Jilin Northeast Tigers 105-88, and the Qingdao Eagles edged the Sichuan Blue Whales 93-91 here on Saturday.

Falling behind by five points in the first half, Zhejiang outscored Jilin 74-52 coming back from the locker room. Hu Jinqiu recorded a double-double of 26 points and 17 boards. Zhao Yanhao and Kay Felder contributed 21 and 19 points respectively.

Zhejiang head coach Wang Bo admitted the game was tight, especially in the first half.

"I tried to make my players feel relieved at the break. We scored 40 points in the third quarter, which boosted the team's morale," he said.

Zhejiang was clearly aware of Dominique Jones' role for Jilin, using a double team on him after the tip-off. Jones, who averaged 38.2 points in the regular season, was restrained to six points in the opening quarter, but his teammates stepped up as Jiang Weize bagged five points in a row to pull it back at 16-19 when the quarter time ran out.

In a defense-oriented first half, Zhejiang only scored two points in over six minutes from there. Sun Minghui ended their scoring drought with a layup, and Hu followed with a second chance basket and a pair of free throws.

Despite a 36-31 halftime lead, Jilin suffered a scare as Jiang Yuxing injured his waist and was helped off the court with 3:10 to play in the second quarter.

Jiang returned after the intermission, but failed to provide much help for his team. Li Jinglong connected on three 3-pointers, preceding Zhejiang's 9-0 surge early in the third quarter.

Jilin center Li An, who hauled down 15 rebounds, fouled out with four minutes remaining, giving Zhejiang a huge advantage in the paint. Hu scored 10 points afterwards as Zhejiang had a nine-point advantage going into the last quarter.

Dai Huaibo and Jiang Weize continued to contribute from the 3-point range, helping Jilin cut the deficit to 77-73, but Zhao and Felder combined for the next eight points and Zhejiang widened their margin to as many as 20 points after Zhao's free throws.

Jones finished with a game-high 30 points along with eight rebounds and 12 assists. Jiang Weize went 7 for 12 on 3-point attempts to nail 25 points.

"We executed defensive tactics well in the first half, but didn't have a good job in defensive rotation and left their shooters open in the third quarter," said Jilin head coach Wang Han, while expressing his satisfaction with the result and the team's fighting spirit.

The game between Qingdao and Sichuan was an intense one. With Qingdao leading by two points going into the final minute, Lin Weihan made a steal and drew a foul, but he missed the ensuing two free throws, giving Sichuan a chance of tying the game. However, rookie Zhu Songwei saw his pass intercepted by Qingdao guard Zhang Chengyu as the game came to an end.

Qingdao bounced back from an early 7-2 deficit with six straight points. Zhang led the way off the bench, as Qingdao went ahead 21-18 at the conclusion of the opening quarter.

With big man Hamed Haddadi sitting on the bench, Qingdao's Dakari Johnson, Wang Qingming and Liu Chuanxing constantly attacked the basket, before Sichuan answered with six points in a row. Wang scored the next five points, and Darius Adams added two baskets, helping Qingdao to a 44-38 lead at the halftime.

The two teams went back and forth in the third quarter. Marcus Hunt managed a four-point play to move Sichuan up 67-66, but Johnson's buzzer-beating second chance basket earned Qingdao a 70-69 advantage after three quarters.

Sichuan used an 8-0 surge to turn the table, but Adams and Liu led Qingdao back into contention. Back-to-back turnovers towards the end of the game cost Sichuan's chance of continuing their campaign.

Qingdao had five players score in double digits. Liu scored 20 points and pulled down 13 rebounds. Adams had 11 points and dished out 13 assists.

Hunt, Chen Chen and Han Shuo scored 15 points apiece for Sichuan.

Zhejiang will face the Liaoning Flying Leopards, and Qingdao will take on the Zhejiang Golden Bulls on Monday.