The Guangdong Southern Tigers secured their spot in the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) quarterfinals with a decisive 115-92 victory over the Shanghai Sharks in Game 3 of the first-round playoffs on Friday. The win in Dongguan, Guangdong Province, preserves their unbroken record of reaching the CBA postseason quarterfinals every year.
Led by standout performances from Xu Jie (20 points, 11 assists), Hu Mingxuan, and American import Darius Bazley, Guangdong overcame an early 21-13 deficit in the first quarter. A dominant 11-0 run shifted momentum, ending the quarter at 37-26, while Xu and Bazley’s perimeter shooting extended the lead to 19 points by halftime.
The game turned physical in the third quarter, with Guangdong’s Ren Junfei ejected for striking Shanghai’s Wang Zhelin, who later exited due to injury. Without Wang, Shanghai struggled to rally, sealing Guangdong’s victory and setting up a quarterfinal clash with the Shanxi Loongs.
CBA Quarterfinal Matchups
Liaoning Flying Leopards vs. Xinjiang Flying Tigers
