Shanxi comes back from 25 points behind to defeat Xinjiang at home

The Shanxi Loongs defeated the Xinjiang Flying Tigers 115-110 in Taiyuan, north China's Shanxi Province, on Sunday, after wiping out a 25-point deficit in the fourth quarter.

Although Xinjiang were playing on the road, it enjoyed a great start in the game, grabbing a lead of 15 points at 41-26. Elfuratt Mohetaner knocked down a trio of three-pointers for the visitors in the first quarter and Xirzat Samat added two more.

Shanxi counted on Harry Giles to chip away in the second quarter and he contributed 10 points. Hamidou Diallo tallied 10 as well, but the rest of the team combined to score just eight points. On the other side, the Flying Tigers received offensive contributions from multiple players, before closing out the first half leading 73-54.

The Loongs remained cold from behind the arc in the third quarter, missing 25 of their 27 long-range attempts. Xinjiang, on the other hand, did much better from the outside by making 14 of its 26 triples. The visitors had six players score in double digits by the end of the third quarter and led by 25 points, 99-74.

But the visitors suddenly fall into a field goal drought in the fourth quarter. Shanxi exploited their downturn to mount a 16-0 run in less than five minutes. The home team outscored their opponents 41-11 in the final period.

Brandon Goodwin, who missed all six of his three-point attempts, went to the free throw line to nail two shots and put Shanxi ahead 111-110 with less than 40 seconds left. Then Han Peiyu scored under the hoop while drawing a foul. Although he missed the free throw, Q.J. Peterson's desperation three-pointer for the Flying Tigers with seven seconds left was also off the mark, and the Loongs hit a pair of free throws to seal their five-point win.

The victory was Shanxi's 20th of the season to rank second in the standings, one spot in front of third-placed Xinjiang.