Yi shoots China to Olympics
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Xinhua, September 26, 2011
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China's basketball men players celebrate their victory in the final of the Asian Men's Basketball Championships on Sunday. [Photo/Xinhua] |
Yi Jianlian made the game-winning free-throw as China beat Jordan 70-69 in a breath-taking final of the 26th Asian Men's Basketball Championships on Sunday.
Osama Daghles of Jordan collected a loose ball and shot for the beat-the-buzzer jumper, an air-ball which fell widely on the other side of the basket, and China took the berth to the 2012 London Olympic Games.
Only the winners of the continental event had an automatic ticket to London. The silver and bronze medal winners, Jordan and South Korea, will compete at the Olympic Qualifying Tournament in 2012.
Rasheim Wright's 3-pointer tied the game on 69 to all with 1:32 minutes to go, but Jordan failed to score in the following three pocessions to take the upper hand.
Yi buried one of two free-throws to put China ahead with 27.2 seconds to go but China's fate was controlled by the Jordanese.
Liu Wei took an early foul on Wright for the fourth team foul of the quarter. Players scrambled on the floor for a loose ball after a throw-in before Daghles picked it up and made a desperated shot on the buzzer.
Yi Jianlian won the Most Valuable Player award of the tournament with 25 points, 16 rebounds and six blocks. Liu scored 13 points for China.
Jordan led 36-31 in the first half, thanks to 12 turnovers from China. China had six turnovers in the first quarter and committed the other six in four minutes in the second quarter.
Jordan took the advantage to usurp the lead on 17-16 in the second period and never let it loose in the remaining time of the first half.
Yi took the burden of China's attack by scoring 11 points in the second half, initiating a 20-6 run to regain the lead by 51-42 with 4:22 minutes left in the third quarter.
Jordan kept their hopes alive after closing it on 57-54 in over two minutes. The intese defense of both sides kept the scoreline under mark in the rest of the game.
Wright had 26 points, 11 from the fourth quarter, to lead Jordan, after a dismal performance in the preliminary-round 93-60 loss to China. Zaid Abbas had 13 points and 10 rebounds and Daghles chipped in 10.
In the bronze-medal final, South Korea turned the table around in the last minute as they came back from a 11-point fourth-quarter deficit to beat the Philippines 70-68.
Trailing by 47-36 in the fourth quarter, South Korean shooter Cho Sungmin buried three 3-pointers to close it in before Moon Taejong put South Korea ahead with another shot from behind the arc with 47 seconds left, 67-65.
The Philippines still had a chance to win within the last minute, but Marcus Douthit failed to convert an offensive rebound to score with 6.0 seconds to time.
Douthit collected the game-high 27 points and 22 rebounds. Point guard Jim Alapag harvested 17 points. Cho led South Korea with 20 points.
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