Ding Yanyuhang from Shandong had team-high 31 points to lead Team North edge the South 149-147 in the 2016-2017 Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) All-Star game on Sunday.
Wang Zhelin, the young center selected by Memphis Grizzlies in 2016 NBA Draft, started the match with an unexpected three-pointer. Houston Rockets' No. 43 pick of the same year Zhou Qi soon answered with a three-pointer and a powerful dunk to help the North build a two-digit lead.
While the big guys were demonstrating their potential behind the arc, the point and shooting guards, take national team member Guo Ailun as an example, were entertaining the audiences with stunning crossover and layups.
For most of the time, the match was a feast of long range shots and slam dunks, two pairs of teammates from Beijing and Shanghai--Zhai Xiaochuan and Sun Yue, as well as Jimmer Fredette and Guerschon Yabusele--gave a full play of cooperation with alley-oops.
The superstars began to get serious in the last three minutes when two teams tied 144-144. Gu Quan of the South had a three pointer before Guo Ailun from the North scored in the paint and hit the following free throw. In the last minute, Ding Yanyuhang, who played for the North and had a splendid 360°dunk in the first half, broke through the defense to put the basketball in the rim. 149-147, the North won the match.
Ding led the North with 31 points and five dunks, Guo Ailun from Liaoning had 25 points and nine assists, former NBA player Andray Blatche had double-double of 12 points and 12 rebounds.
As for the Team South, Jimmer Fredette contributed match-high 32 points. Gu Quan had 29 points including nine three-pointers.
Although his team lost the match, Fredette had his own triumph as he outscored all the opponents in the Three Point Shooting Contest to win the title with a 22-point performance. Wang Zirui from Xinjiang only used 36.6 seconds to finish the Technics Challenge final and took the trophy.
As the MVP of yesterday' s All-star Rookie Challenge, Sun Minghui continued to shine in tonight' s Dunk Contest as he jumped over his teammate in the first round and had an alley-oop behind the backboard in the second, two dunks combined 100 points to set the new record of the final.
