The CBA playoffs continued with two crucial quarterfinal matchups, following Shanghai’s elimination of Shandong and Guangdong tying their series 1-1. The Shenzhen Leopards secured a hard-fought 95-91 victory over the Zhejiang Golden Bulls in their second meeting, completing a 2-0 sweep and advancing to the semifinals. Meanwhile, the Guangsha Lions narrowly defeated the Shanxi Loongs 86-81, tying their best-of-three series at 1-1.
The Shenzhen-Zhejiang game followed a familiar pattern. After a tight first quarter, Shenzhen seized control in the second period, building a double-digit lead. Zhejiang mounted a fierce comeback in the fourth quarter, led by Cheng Shuaipei, but He Xining responded with four three-pointers in the final period to stabilize the Leopards’ advantage. Shenzhen ultimately closed out the game 95-91, winning the series 2-0.
Statistically, Shenzhen dominated across the board: rebounds (44-38), assists (24-14), steals (11-6), field goal percentage (53.1% vs 42.5%), and three-point percentage (38.1% vs 24.3%). He Xining was instrumental, finishing with 23 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals, including those clutch fourth-quarter threes. Wang Haoran also impressed with 19 points and 2 rebounds. For Zhejiang, Cheng Shuaipei led all scorers with 25 points, while young Li Yuzhou added 15 points and 4 assists.
The Shanxi-Guangsha contest was a physical, high-intensity battle. Guangsha jumped out early behind Zhao Jiaren’s hot three-point shooting in the first quarter, building a double-digit lead by halftime. Shanxi fought back stubbornly, narrowing the gap to three points after a tense third quarter featuring heavy fouls and low offensive efficiency. In the final period, Guangsha again pushed the lead to double figures, but three-pointers from Zhang Ning and Jia Mingru kept Shanxi within striking distance. Despite late mistakes from Guangsha, Shanxi couldn’t capitalize, and the game ended 86-81.
Key stats were similar between the teams, but Guangsha held a slight edge in rebounds, assists, and turnovers. Hu Jinqiu showed improved form with 17 points and 11 rebounds on 62.5% shooting. Zhao Jiaren was a surprise contributor, hitting three triples for 11 points. However, Guangsha’s imports—Brown, Tucker, Sampson, and Carlton—all struggled with efficiency.
Shanxi, despite the loss, performed admirably given their lower regular-season standing. Like Guangsha, their imports underperformed, with only Diallo managing 16 points and 7 rebounds; Knight, Faye, and Nix all had low efficiency. The decisive Game 3 is scheduled for the evening of the 13th, with both teams evenly matched and a spot in the semifinals on the line.