BEIJING, April 14 (Xinhua) -- The Royal Fighters clinched victory over the Ducks in a Beijing derby 105-98, while the Shanxi Loongs eased past Guangdong Southern Tigers 123-81 in the best-of-five quarterfinals of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) playoffs on Monday.

As the Ducks' star center Zhou Qi announced his absence from the derby due to eye injury on social media before the match, the third-seeded Ducks felt more pressure at home in the face of the Royal Fighters.

Grant Riller of the Royal Fighters and Chen Ying-chun of the Ducks scored 19 and 13 points respectively in a 53-51 first half, with the Royal Fighters ahead.

The Ducks once came back to strengthen their offense in the third quarter to establish a 10-point advantage, while Travis Trice pocketed 10 points quickly to help the Royal Fighters retake the lead.

The Royal Fighters were in the upper hand during the final quarter until Riller secured the victory with a lay-up and a pair of free throws.

Riller made four three-pointers to have a game-high 31 points, and Chen contributed 27 points and four assists.

In another match, seven players of Shanxi scored in double digits to dominate the game for a 42-point victory, while Guangdong only had 29 points in the second half.

The second game of the two match-ups will be staged on Wednesday. Enditem

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