HENGYANG, China, June 10 (Xinhua) -- Scoring only four in the first quarter, Team Red of Chinese men's basketball national team missed a crucial three-pointer to lose again to Australian NBL United team 55-58 in the second stop of 2018 International Basketball Challenge in Hengyang, Hunan Province on Sunday.
The NBL United team created several chances with assists to start the match 7-0. Wang Zhelin scored China's first two points after over three minutes, he added another two to contributed all points China had this quarter, 4-13.
Free throws became the major method for both teams to score at the beginning of the second quarter. Team Red stormed 8-0 after three-pointers of Abdusalam and Liu Zhixuan, cutting the deficit down to 16-24 before the interval.
The hosts enjoyed a 15-6 start after the break, acquiring their first lead in the match 31-30 in the third quarter. However, the Australians managed to surpass again with one-point lead in the last minute. They extended the lead to three later with two free throws, leaving Team Red no choice but to shoot a three pointer. Liu Zhixuan lost the chance to tie the match as team red lost again 55-58 after the 52-64 loss on Friday night.
Wang Zhelin had game-high 20 points and eight rebounds, Zhao Tailong hit five of seven attempts behind the arc to score 15. Christopher Goulding led the Australian team with 16 points.
"We had a super terrible first quarter, only scoring four points, but we also had chance to win the game later." Commented Li Nan, coach of Team Red, "If we did, it will be good for the confidence of the young players but sadly we should make better use of our last chance."
The last game of the series will be played on Tuesday in Beijing.
