BEIJING, Dec. 23 (Xinhua) -- Three-time league champion Beijing defeated Xinjiang 101-95 and ended its seven-game winning streak in the 20th round of the 2016-2017 Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) action here on Friday.
Beijing, led by veteran Stephon Marbury, had an even game with powerhouse Xinjiang in the first 10 minutes, and the home team managed to get a 25-18 lead as the first quarter ended.
Benjamin Bentil scored five points and helped Xinjiang tie the game when the second quarter started. With three-pointers from Wang Xiaohui and new foreign recruit Grant Jerrett, a NBDL center, Beijing enlarged the gap to 10 points.
With few assists and low percentage shot, Xinjiang fell 21 points behind when the third quarter ended.
Xinjiang managed to narrow the difference to three points as they beefed up defense with 42 seconds remaining. Zhu Yanxi hit a three-pointer and helped Beijing nail the victory.
Darius Adams got a game-high 36 points and 10 rebounds, rising star Zhou Qi pocketed 11 points and 10 rebounds. Marbury finished with 26 points along with seven assists while Jerrett got 19 points in his CBA debut.
"Our perimeter defense wasn't good enough and Beijing hit as many as 10 three-pointers in the first half. In the key time, it was also the weak defense that got trouble for us," said Li Qiuping, coach of Xinjiang.
In Friday's other matches, Liaoning beat Tongxi 130-107, Guangzhou edged Shenzhen 105-103, Guangsha overwhelmed Fujian 112-87, and Bayi lost to Shandong 77-84.