CBA: Jeremy Lin’s Beijing Ducks lose to Xinjiang Flying Tigers
- NBA champion sees side rally only to lose 88-87 in Chinese Basketball Association
- Xinjiang Flying Tigers snatch victory at the last
Jeremy Lin and the Beijing Ducks came away empty-handed after a dramatic 88-87 loss to the Xinjiang Flying Tigers in Beijing on Christmas Day.
Wednesday's encounter saw the CBA’s second-best team travel to the third-placed Ducks and it was the visitors who did the early running despite an injury setback.
The Flying Tigers lost Abudushalamu Abudurexiti to a knee injury, with the China national team star leaving the court on a stretcher.
Beijing were unable to take advantage and found themselves nine points down midway through the fourth quarter.
Lin returned to the fray and Beijing went on a 10-2 run to leave the game in the balance with the score 85-84 with a minute on the clock.
The Ducks had the chance to win the game with 40 seconds remaining. Xinjiang’s Zhou Qi missed from the free-throw line Ekpe Udoh’s pass was intercepted.
The Tigers then ran down the shot clock before ensuring victory with Zeng Lingxu’s final bucket.
Lin scored 21 points, five rebounds, four assists and four steals in 36 minutes, while teammate Udoh top-scored with 27 points.
The 31-year-old told local media that the game was not lost because of the intercepted final play.
“It is not the fault of the last play, but the problem that we should solve earlier. Xinjiang is a very strong team and we have learned a lot,” he said.
“Today I am very proud. The whole team is playing together, and we have done our best. Sometimes we can learn a lot from the game. What we can learn today is that we should be a bit fiercer when we rebound.”
Defeat for the Ducks, who are 14-7, saw them drop to fourth on the standings, while Xinjiang improved to 16-4 to stay second behind the Guangdong Southern Tigers, who are 18-2 for the season.
NBA champion Lin also posted on Chinese social media about his favourite Christmas and to wish fans a happy new year. He also gave one fan at the Wukesong Arena his match-worn shoes.
The Ducks return to action on Saturday when they travel to Nanjing to face the Monkey Kings before a New Year’s Eve showdown with the Sichuan Blue Whales in Chengdu.
