Marbury leads Beijing close to CBA finals

DONGGUAN - Former NBA star Steven Marbury scored 43 points as Beijing Ducks claimed a road victory over defending champions Guangdong Hongyuan 109-104 on Saturday.

With the away win, Beijing put their noses in front again in the best-of-five semifinal series in the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) league and need only one more victory to advance to the finals.

Despite Marbury's unstoppable performance, Randolph Morris contributed another 33 points, making the away team invincible.

Marbury made all his 9 attempts and scored 19 point in the first quarter, only to see Guangdong played as a whole team and lead 27-25.

Guangdong increased their lead to 57-45 in the second quarter with Yi Jianlian dominating the inside and Wang Shipeng' soft shooting outside the three-point line.

With Marbury and Morris' effort, however, Beijing managed to cut a 17-point deficit to zero at the end of third quarter. The duo continued their deadly attacking and lead Beijing a 6-0 run in the beginning of the fourth quarter, while Guangdong hang tough and tied the game 93-93 in regular time.

The overtime saw Marbury again become the hero. The 37-year old scored a vital three pointer with one minute to go, helping Beijing make a 7-point gap which the defending champions unable to cross.