Thanks to Grant Riller's 47 points, the Beijing Royal Fighters beat defending champions the Liaoning Flying Leopards 114-106, while the table-topping Xinjiang Flying Tigers lost to the Shanxi Loongs 108-111 in the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) on Friday.

The game between Liaoning and the Royal Fighters remained close and competitive until the last moment. Riller's stretch of forceful play and Meng Zikai's key three-pointer helped Beijing lock down the victory.

Riller hit seven three-pointers out of 10 attempts, and grabbed 47 points, five rebounds and seven assists, helping his team get their eighth consecutive win.

Elsewhere, Qi Lin's 27 points helped Xinjiang to a lead of 14 points in the first half of their game, but that advantage did not lead to a win. They stopped their pace of scoring for more than three minutes in the last quarter, while Shanxi seized the chance and overturned the game.

"I think our problem originated from the defensive side. We did the defense right in the first half, but things became different in the rest part of the game. We need to learn from our mistakes," rued Xinjiang head coach Qiu Biao.

Alexey Shved got 30 points, seven rebounds and four assists for Shanxi, while Yuan Shuai added 26 points.

"No matter whether we won or lost, it is important that we show our energy and tactics. We need to focus more on defense and rebounds in the game," said Shanxi head coach Yang Xuezeng.

In the other two games, the Nanjing Monkeys defeated the Zhejiang Lions 89-79, and the Fujian Sturgeons edged the Tianjin Pioneers 115-109. 

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