The Beijing Ducks clinched a thrilling 81-76 victory against the Qingdao Eagles in their debut match at the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) Club Cup, held in Qingdao, Shandong Province, on Tuesday.
Facing the absence of key players like Zeng Fanbo, Beijing's head coach Xu Limin opted for an 11-player rotation. Impressively, nine players logged over 10 minutes on the court, with nine contributing to the scoreboard.
The Ducks' foreign trio—Eugene German, Richard Solomon, and Anunwa Omot—played pivotal roles in securing the win. German's aggressive penetrations, Omot's sharp three-point shooting, and Solomon's dominance at the rim helped Beijing establish a 24-22 lead at the end of the first quarter.
In the second quarter, Qingdao's American power forward Jordan Mickey stepped up, delivering a series of tough shots that narrowed Beijing's lead to just one point, 43-42, by halftime. The third quarter saw Lyu Junhu from Qingdao knocking down three triples, while Beijing struggled offensively, allowing Qingdao to build a maximum 12-point lead at 66-54. Despite a strong comeback effort from Zhai Xiaochuan and German, Beijing trailed by 10 points, 68-58, at the end of the third quarter.
The fourth quarter was a rollercoaster, with Beijing launching a 10-4 run and outscoring Qingdao by 15 points in the final stretch. However, Qingdao's defense tightened, limiting Beijing to no more than eight points. Jordan Mickey finished the game with a game-high 28 points for Qingdao, but it wasn't enough to overturn the deficit.
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
