It's always a must-watch when the Guangdong Southern Tigers face the Beijing Ducks, as the two teams of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) have always provided fierce matchups in the past.

Despite the exciting games, the Southern Tigers have retained the upper hand ever since Stephon Marbury retired from the Ducks, thanks to their overall strength and deep lineup, and this held true Tuesday night. 

With Marshon Brooks' four free throws in the last 17 seconds, Guangdong once again sealed a close win over Beijing 111-107 in their first confrontation since last season's CBA semifinals. 

Yi Jianlian's absence compromised Guangdong's competitiveness, but the reigning champions had a bevy of other talented players on the court. Guangdong's star guard duo, Hu Mingxuan and Xu Jie, established the lead for the Southern Tigers in the first half of the game.

During the offseason, Beijing saw Jeremy Lin leave, even though the team wanted him to to stay and continue leading their pursuit of a championship. Lin's departure hasn't diminished the team's ambition to build on their past glories, as they later signed two rising centers, Li Muhao and Fan Ziming, to add strength under the basket, and then reached a multi-year agreement with Italian Simone Pianigiani as the head coach.

In the post-Marbury era, Beijing is still relentlessly chasing a championship. Although their time has not arrived, they're still a team reigning champions Guangdong need to watch out for.

In the second half of the game, Beijing came back from behind. With the help of Fang Shuo, captain Zhai Xiaochuan and Zhu Yanxi, the team's most reliable domestic players, together with the team's newly signed foreign player Jonathan Gibson, Beijing played a stunning half, outscoring Guangdong 64-50 and tying the game 107-107. 

Fang, Zhai and Zhu played 41 minutes, 44 minutes and 36 minutes, respectively, contributing a total of 54 points and 20 of Beijing's 27 assists. When facing a champion like Guangdong, the most stable and trustworthy players are still the three who played with Marbury during the four season where they captured three titles.

Fang fouled out before the defining moment, and Wang Xiaohui, a reliable three-point shooter, missed two opportunities that would have sparked a comeback. Wang drew the ire of fans on social media for tripping Guangdong's Sonny Weems after missing his much-needed shot.

Wang's irrational move did little to detract from yet another exciting game between the two teams. For Guangdong, they are still the best team in CBA, and as for Beijing, with their new jerseys and new coach, they are on course for a promising season. 

(Cover image: Beijing's Fang Shuo (R) and Guangdong's Hu Mingxuan in action during a regular 2020-2021 Chinese Basketball Association season game in Zhuji, east China's Zhejiang Province, November 3, 2020. /CFP)