Sunyue lifts Beijing past Guangdong 106-104

Sunyue's two free throws helped defending champion Beijing edge Guangdong 106-104 in the 15th round of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) league here on Wednesday.

   Guangdong started with a 7-0 run, but Beijing scored 9 points then. The two teams tied for four times till Guangdong finished the first quarter by leading at 25-21.

   The host Beijing went on a 14-0 run to take the lead in the second quarter, but Guangdong fought back and ended the first half with two-point advantage.

   In the third quarter, Guangdong enlarged their lead to as many as 13.      With a bunch of three-pointers by Zhang Qingpeng, Jizhe and Sunyue, Beijing caught up Guangdong in a tie as the fourth quarter ended.

   Sunyue's two free throws were absolutely crucial in overtime, snapping Beijing's three-game losing streak.

   Six players of Beijing scored double-digits. Former NBA star Stephon Marbury led Beijing with 21 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Randolph Morris contributed 18 points, Zhang Qingpeng added 17, Zhai Xiaochuan scored 13, Jizhe had 12, and Sunyue got 10.

   Guangdong's foreign player Will Bynum got the game-high 28 points, six rebounds, four assists and one steal. Yi Jianlian contributed 20 points and 12 rebounds, Zhoupeng had 18 points, Ike Diogu collected 18 points, 9 rebounds, Zhu Fangyu had 14 points.

   Chinese rising star center Zhou Qi's 29 points helped Xinjiang to continue their stay at the top of the league after beating Sichuan 124-118. 

  In Wednesday's other games, Zhejiang thrashed Fujian 124-107, Shenzhen beat Shanghai 106-100, Beikong overwhelmed Shanxi 118-104, Guangsha downed Tongxi 115-99, Jiangsu crashed Shandong 113-99, Liaoning overpowered Bayi 106-96, and Tianjin tamed Jilin 119-89.

   In an earlier 15th round game on Tuesday, Qingdao beat Foshan 116-111.  Endi