China powers past Chinese Taipei 121-61 ( 2003-09-25 10:02) (Xinhua)
China swept Chinese Taipei 121-61 for their second straight win at the Asian
men's basketball championship at Tianrun Center on Wednesday.
Houston Rockets star center Yao Ming notched a game-high 29 points and pulled
down 13 rebounds in 20"China, which slashed Syria 103-51 in their opener on
Tuesday, dominated every corner from the start to the end in a totally one-
sided game, beating their opponents in each quarter with much higher veracity
and domination on the board..
Yao used a dunk to start the match as China opened a 12-2 run within 2:43 to
lead the first quarter 28-16. Yao had 15 points and eight rebounds in the first
half, going 3-for-3 from the free- throw line.
The home side extended a 30-point lead before the break to 50 after the third
quarter, snuffing out Chinese Taipei's comeback efforts. China enlarged the gap
to 60 in the fourth quarter, ending the match with a 121-61 win.
"My players worked hard, and we had a better game today. Iran is not
easy, yet we have prepared for challenge," said China's coach Jiang Xingquan,
who led China to the 1994 world championship quarterfinals for the first time.
China will face Iran in their third group match.
In other actions played in Tianrun Center on Wednesday, Lebanon demolished
Hong Kong of China 90-67, Kazakhstan beat Uzbekistan 86- 66, Iran outlasted
Syria 82-67.
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