League leaders Xinjiang Guanghui ousted Dongguan Marco Polo 108-102 Wednesday in a possible championship match-up to stamp their authority of the Chinse Basketball Association league (CBA).
Xinjiang (27-1) had a 2-0 record against the second-placed Dongguan (22-6) this season. The leaders also won both encounters with the defending champions Guangdong Hongyuan, which were 21-7 on the third placings.
The victory secured the No. 1 seat for Xinjiang with four rounds to go in the regular season.
James Singleton had 36 points and 17 rebounds while Quincy Douby added 35 points, seven rebounds and seven assists for Xinjiang.
Dongguan played with the starting forward Jackson Vroman, who injured his finger on Sunday, as Joshua Akognon led the team with 44 points.
Akognon made 16 baskets, including eight 3-pointers, in the match, but he missed the same number of 3-pointer attempts and the whole team shot modest from behind the arc by 33.3 per cent.
The home team even led 44-41 on the break, but fell apart soon when both Akognon and Singleton were on the court in the second half.
Xinjiang won the third quarter to lead 72-64 and carried on to scored 36 points in the fourth quarter when Dongguan chipped in 38 points.
Dongguan never gave up in the decisive period as they closed up within four points several times, but failed to make one more step to grab a victory at home.
Marcus Williams had 45 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists to lead Zhejiang Chouzhou to a comeback win over Beijing Ducks, 101-94.
The Chozhou turned a 17-point half-time deficit to a one-point lead at the end of third quarter before they cruised to the road win.
Randolph Morris had 41 points and 20 rebounds to lead Beijing to a 62-45 lead on the break and the home team looked quite good on way to an easy win.
The Chouzhou came back strongly to turn the table around as they usurp the lead by 76-75 in the third quarter.
In other matches of the round, Qingdao Doublestar beat Tianjin Ronggang 91-85, Jiangsu Dragons beat Bayi Fubang 108-102, Shandong Gold beat Foshan 91-83, Guangdong beat Shanghai Sharks 130-104, Shanxi Zhongyu beat Fujian SBS 108-107 while Zhejiang Guangsha beat Jilin Northeast Tigers 105-103.
