DONGGUAN, China, Nov. 4 (Xinhua) -- The men's basketball tournament for the adult group at the 15th Chinese National Games tipped off Tuesday, with defending champion Liaoning and host Guangdong securing opening victories.
Liaoning began its title defense by defeating Jilin 118-68 in Group I, while Guangdong beat Shandong 87-71 in Group II.
Jilin kept the game close early, but a 12-0 run led by Fu Hao and Yuan Shuai in the first quarter helped Liaoning establish a 30-20 lead. Liaoning extended its advantage to 71-34 by halftime with strong defense and maintained a large margin for the rest of the game.
Fu Hao finished with a team-high 20 points, leading six Liaoning players who scored in double figures. Yu Zechen added 19 points and six rebounds, while Zhao Jiwei recorded a double-double with 15 points and 11 assists.
"Our 'golden generation' was in its prime four years ago. Compared to the gold medalists from the 14th National Games, we have had many changes to our squad," Liaoning head coach Yang Ming told Xinhua in a postgame news conference.
"Obviously, the Guangdong team has the best squad. My job is to tap into my players' potential," Yang added.
In the other high-profile game, Guangdong took a 25-17 lead in the first quarter. Shandong cut the deficit to four points by halftime, but Chinese national team captain Zhao Rui hit three 3-pointers in the third quarter to help Guangdong rebuild a 16-point lead, which it held for the win.
In other Tuesday games, Tianjin beat Macao 109-63, Sichuan defeated Hubei 124-61, Shanghai beat Henan 84-77 and Zhejiang won against Jiangsu 82-59.
Fourteen teams are competing in the men's basketball preliminaries, divided into three groups. The three group winners, three runners-up and the two best third-place finishers will advance to the quarterfinals.
