China went down fighting against South Korea in the opening game of the FIBA Women's Olympic Pre-Qualifying Tournament for Asia-Oceania Region on Thursday. The Chinese side, featuring 7 players from the team that won the silver medal at the Women's Asia Cup in September, lost by a solitary point as their neighbors won the nail-biting Group A opening match 81-80 at the Trusts Arena in Auckland, New Zealand.

South Korea's WNBA star Park Ji-su spearhead her side's emphatic win with the game's highest score of 23 points in the topsy-turvy contest that came down to the wire. In fact, the Chinese side was leading by a point with less than a minute left for the final hooter but a remarkable layup by the Park Hye-jin clinched the match-winning two points for the Koreans with just 27 seconds left in the fourth quarter. Chinese Center Li Yueru notched up 15 points for her side.

Earlier, Li Yuan drew the first blood in the game for China with a jump shot in the opening minute of the first quarter. But the Koreans fought back and the neck and neck battle saw the Red Brigade trailing behind their rivals at the end of the first quarter. The ROK side took a 25-17 lead before the end of the period. Park Hye-jin’s all-round performance helped the Koreans extend their narrow lead to 48-41 before going into the half-time.

Park came all guns blazing even after the break, and her exploits with the ball and dangerous runs off it guided her side to 66-56 at the end of the third quarter. However, the Chinese cagers clawed their way back into the game and led by a Huang Sijing three-pointer. The PRC girls almost caught up with the Koreans in an intensely-fought fourth quarter. A brilliant Yang Liwei layup tied the score at 77-77 with less than three minutes left in the game and subsequently, a successful Li Meng jump shot put the PRC in the lead for the first time in the game. The Chinese side was a minute away from a breath-taking win with a 80-77 lead but an experienced Kim Jung-eun cut the deficit with a layup into the final minute before Park Hye-jin sealed the deal for the Korean side, shattering the Chinese's hopes.

In their remaining Group A matches, China will be playing against hosts New Zealand and the Philippines.