Sudden ankle sprain! Scored 19 points on 8 shots! The only bright spot for China’s men’s basketball team

It was assumed that the 76-80 defeat to South Korea in the first World Cup qualifier was merely a poor performance...

Unexpectedly, after a few months, the team’s mentality shifted dramatically. The China team from the Asia Cup was nowhere to be seen, replaced by an extremely sluggish squad, down 29-52 to South Korea at halftime in the next match.

Certainly, South Korea’s offense was outstanding, hitting shots effortlessly, making 7 of 10 three-pointers in the first half, with Lee Jung-hyun scoring a perfect 16 points. But China managing only 29 points in the first half clearly showed serious internal issues.

Throughout the first half, China made just 1 out of 12 three-pointers, with only Cheng Shuaipeng sinking a three. He also had 5 assists but made 8 turnovers, resulting in a disaster on the court that was hard to watch.

It’s worth noting that during this year’s Asia Cup, China led all teams with a three-point shooting rate of around 40%, yet now everyone lost their accuracy. In modern basketball, a team without shooting can hardly win, let alone achieve a remarkable 23-point comeback.

In the second half, led by Cheng Shuaipeng, China’s offense improved somewhat, but they still couldn’t contain South Korea’s firepower, nor overcome the impact of refereeing decisions. After three quarters, the score was 52-80, trailing by a huge 28 points.

Shortly after the final quarter began, Cheng Shuaipeng suffered an ankle sprain and had to leave the game early, removing China’s top scorer from the match.

In the last quarter, China took a desperate gamble by switching to a zone defense, which surprisingly worked, suppressing South Korea’s previously unstoppable offense. Unfortunately, the deficit was too large, and they ultimately lost 76-90, suffering their second consecutive defeat in the World Cup qualifiers.

Two South Korean players scored over 20 points: Lee Jung-hyun with 24 points, 2 rebounds, and 4 assists; Lee Hyun-jung with 20 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals.The whole team made 11 out of 23 three-pointers, shooting approximately 48%.

In contrast, China’s teammade only 5 of 28 three-pointers, shooting a pitiful 18% success rate.Cheng Shuaipeng scored 19 points on 8 shots (4 of 6 from three), standing out as the only highlight.

What else can be said? There’s nothing left to say.