HANGZHOU, June 2 (Xinhua) -- The Zhejiang Lions upset the Shanghai Sharks 101-93 here on Tuesday to cut their deficit to 3-1 in the best-of-seven Chinese Basketball Association Finals.
In what was potentially the defending champion's final home game of the season, Hu Jinqiu showed determination from the start, with his dunk and free throw helping Zhejiang set the tone. The reigning regular season MVP went six-of-six from the floor to contribute 14 points as Zhejiang built a 28-18 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Within two minutes of the second quarter, Kyle Fogg and Brandon Goodwin led a 7-0 run that forced Zhejiang to call a timeout. Li Hongquan's 3-pointer then put Shanghai ahead at 37-36, while Hu added eight more points in the quarter to keep Zhejiang in the game. The two teams entered the break tied at 49-49.
Rayjon Tucker shone in the third quarter with consecutive 3-pointers to rebuild Zhejiang's lead into double digits. Zhang Zhenlin kept attacking the rim to cut the deficit for Shanghai, but the performances of Barry Brown and Lin Bingsheng from beyond the arc ended the visitors' hope of closing out the series in four games.
Hu finished with a game-high 30 points, Brown added 27, and Tucker had a double-double of 22 points and 11 rebounds. Goodwin led Shanghai with 28 points and eight assists.
"I told our players that we need to seize the opportunity in our own hands, even if there's only 10% or 1% hope. Only by doing this can we earn the right to make choices, rather than waiting for our opponents to make mistakes," said Zhejiang coach Wang Bo. "I hope our team remembers tonight's game, carries forward what we did today, and keeps moving forward."
Game five will be played on Friday in Shanghai. The Sharks are one win away from their second CBA title. In the 2001-02 season, Yao Ming led Shanghai to victory over traditional powerhouse Bayi to win their only championship to date. Enditem
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