Shanxi end Guangsha's 12-game winning streak in CBA's top battle

The Shanxi Loongs defeated the Guangsha Lions 100-98 in a clash between the top-two teams of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, on Wednesday, ending the league leaders' 12-game winning streak and their 19-game undefeated record at home.

Yuan Shuai made the visitors' first field goal (FG) of the game by knocking a down a shot from the top of the key. That was the 1,140th triple of his career, the seventh-most in league history.

Guangsha built a 10-point lead at 24-14 after Barry Brown Jr. scored four straight points, but Zhang Ning stepped up for Shanxi by making one triple and drawing a three-point foul, cutting his side's deficit to only three points at 34-31 when the quarter ended.

Hu Jinqiu and Josh Carlton extended the hosts' advantage to 40-33 by making a series of jumpers early in the second quarter. The gap stood for about four minutes before Shanxi drove a 9-2 run to tie the score at 50-50. Zhu Junlong earned two free throws and made both at the end of the quarter for Guangsha to lead 55-53 before the halftime break.

The home team suffered a three-and-a-half-minute scoring drought when the third quarter began. Shanxi exploited it with a 11-0 run to gain the lead and then further extended their advantage to 15 points at 77-62 as Ibrahima Faye kept charging into the opponents' paint. Hu Jinqiu and Sun Minghui both made triples for Guangsha in the final minutes of the quarter, cutting their deficit to seven points at 84-77 when the quarter ended.

Shanxi increased their advantage to 89-77 early in the fourth quarter after Hamidou Diallo and Yuan scored five straight points within one minute. However,  the visitors then fell into a drought during which Gungsha replied with a 14-1 run to lead by one point. The score remained close as the game went on. Hu grabbed a key offensive rebound in the final two minutes and completed a three-point play, putting the hosts on top 98-96. Then Liu Chuanxing drew a foul and made two free throws to tie the score for Shanxi.

The visitors' showed remarkable defensive energy in the final minute, forcing a shot clock violation by the opponents and a missed jumper by Sun. In Shanxi's final offensive possession, Zhang completed scored a buzzer-beating layup to earn a huge win.

Other games on the night (winners come first):

Beijing Ducks 103-94 Shandong Kirin

Xinjiang Flying Tigers 110-103 Ningbo Rockets

Fujian Sturgeons 122-113 Nanjing Monkey Mings

Guangdong Southern Tigers 127-83 Liaoning Flying Leopards

Jilin Northeast Tigers 118-102 Sichuan Blue Whales

Qingdao Eagles 126-80 Guangzhou Loong Lions

Shanghai Sharks 126-113 Tianjin Pioneers