Zhang Zhenlin (top) of China dunks during the men's basketball quarterfinal against South Korea at the Hangzhou Asian Games on Oct. 3, 2023. (Xinhua/Pan Yulong)
Chinese young basketball players demonstrated energy and team chemistry in the victory over South Korea at the Asiad men's quarterfinal.
HANGZHOU, Oct. 3 (Xinhua) -- China beat South Korea 84-70 in the men's basketball quarterfinals on Tuesday at the Hangzhou Asian Games, setting up a clash with the Philippines in the semifinals.
Du Runwang led China with 16 points including four 3-pointers, and Hu Jinqiu went 7 of 10 to add 14. Guard Hu Mingxuan scored 10 points and dished out four assists.
Du, who had already shown off his shooting skills in the preliminary round, shone again in Tuesday's game, confidently dropping 10 points in the second quarter to ignite a 14-0 run for China. Following Zhang Zhenlin's chase-down block, Zhejiang-based guard Cheng Shuaipeng made two coast-to-coast layups as China built a 21-point lead before the halftime break.
The game got more physical as players returned from the lockers, but Hu Jinqiu kept attacking in the paint against two or three opponents. With Zhang's poster dunk and Du's corner 3, China thwarted South Korea's comeback efforts in the last quarter.
Du Runwang (C) of China goes for a layup during the match. (Xinhua/Meng Yongmin)
As some of the younger players on China's squad showed good chemistry, China's head coach Aleksandar Djordjevic praised his young lads' hard work at the post-game press conference.
"The youth of those players is not only shown by years, but especially by competitions they played internationally till now. Of course we all know the three tough years China passed through with the pandemics, and there were also competitions that were lack of fans and intensity, it was very tough to keep on playing and keeping the attitude of getting better and better," Djordjevic said.
"I want to underline that since day one I came here, their efforts on the practices, and attention, were always there. When a coach sees it, especially a coach who has been in the same shoes as them, you understand it's a good process," he added.
"This competition [Asian Games] is tailor-made to our team, and I hope they take advantage of getting more and more experience."
Aleksandar Djordjevic, coach of team China, instructs players during match. (Xinhua/Pan Yulong)
Known for their long-range shooting, which is one of their main scoring ways, South Korea had an icy shooting touch by only making seven out of 25 attempts. Naturalized veteran Ra Gu-na took 14 points and grabbed seven rebounds, while 2018 Asiad 3x3 basketball silver medalist Yang Hong-seok added 13 points.
Rumored to leave the South Korean national team, 34-year-old Ra said he would return to his KBL team first. "This is the last year of my contract, I actually don't know what's going on, I'm going back to my team in the KBL. They want me to continue to be a player on the national team or not, I'm not really sure," Ra said, adding "I just feel like we get to get better, I feel like China and Japan already took that lead, and we are left alone."
Also on Tuesday, the Philippines edged Iran 84-83 to meet China in Wednesday's semifinal. Facing off against the Gilas, who just inflicted China a bitter memory at the recent FIBA World Cup, Djordjevic described their semifinal rival as a "tough opponent."
"They are here with an experienced team, with some young lads, and they had a great game against Iran. So we have to keep playing our game, starting in defense," Djordjevic said.
In the other two men's quarterfinals, Jordan defeated Saudi Arabia 76-57 and Chinese Taipei overcame Japan 85-66. Jordan will compete with Chinese Taipei for another ticket to the final. ■
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