Sichuan upset Guangdong with breakout rally in third quarter

The Sichuan Blue Whales beat the Guangdong Southern Tigers 104-94 in Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan Province, on Sunday, delivering the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) powerhouse their second straight loss.

The last time Sichuan got a win over Guangdong was over seven years ago on January 11, 2017. Home fans had American guard Edmond Sumner to thank for this long-waited victory. He dropped a double-double of 32 points and 11 rebounds in addition to seven assists and three steals on the night.

Half of Sumner's points were poured in the third quarter during which Sichuan outscored Guangdong 41-15. The home side not only wiped a six-point deficit of 57-51 from the first half, they sat on a 20-point lead, 92-72 after the third quarter.

"He is very self-disciplined, and sets a very good example for our domestic players," Sichuan's head coach Han Shuo told CGTN Sports Scene's Liu Jiaqi. "His attitude in life, training, and towards the game is very worthy of learning for the young players."

Sichuan's defense was key to their precious win as well. Though they could not stop Xu Jie from claiming a season-high 32 points, the team limited Xu's field goal (FG) attempts to no more than two in the third quarter. Without Xu's offensive power, shorthanded Guangdong struggled to make shots in this quarter and had to watch Sichuan take the suspense out of the game.