CBA rankings were shaken overnight! Beijing rises to fourth place, Xinjiang enters the playoff zone, and the second-to-last team wins again

On January 23rd Beijing time, the 18th round of the CBA regular season continued. In the four games that concluded last night, second-to-last Jiangsu surged late to defeat Tianjin 83-77 for a second win, Shenzhen powered through the final quarter to beat Shanxi 105-95, and in a tough matchup, Beijing edged Zhejiang 79-73 despite Zhejiang’s poor three-point shooting. Xinjiang dominated Sichuan 98-56, which led to an updated standings table: Beijing returned to the top four, Shenzhen extended their winning streak to three and sits sixth, Shanxi is seventh, Xinjiang broke into the playoff spots, and Sichuan remains at the bottom with 18 straight losses!

Jiangsu vs. Tianjin. Two struggling teams faced off, with Jiangsu holding only 3 wins this season and ranking second to last. Although Tianjin is also a weak team, they were on a 4-game winning streak and playing well. The first quarter saw low shooting percentages and intense defense, with Jiangsu slightly outplaying Tianjin. In the second quarter, Jiangsu capitalized, with Giles in hot form helping Jiangsu build an 8-point halftime lead. After the break, Tianjin fought back and narrowed the gap, but Jiangsu quickly regained control and expanded the margin. Pang Zhenglin repeatedly delivered assists, and ultimately Jiangsu won the battle of the bottom teams, securing their fourth victory of the season, which was hard-earned!

Shenzhen vs. Shanxi. Both teams had identical records, making this a crucial positioning game. The match was tightly contested, with the score difference never widening significantly. Shenzhen maintained a slight lead, with He Xining performing very efficiently. In the final quarter, Shenzhen pushed hard with a decisive run to seal the game. Shanxi’s offense was limited and unable to catch up. Ultimately, Shenzhen used strong team play to comfortably defeat Shanxi. Despite Diallo scoring 31 points, his aggressive style was not enough for Shanxi!

Beijing narrowly defeated Zhejiang. Two powerhouses met, both in poor recent form, attracting attention for this round. At the start, home team Beijing quickly scored to open a gap, while Zhejiang fought back to narrow it, ending the first quarter with Beijing ahead by 4. In the second quarter, both teams tightened defense leading to many missed shots; Zhejiang took advantage to reduce the deficit, with Beijing leading by just 1 at halftime. The second half saw a back-and-forth battle with the score tied at 18 in the quarter and the margin still 1 point. In the final quarter, Beijing launched an offensive surge to pull away. Zhejiang’s three-point shooting was poor and they stubbornly stuck to it without adjustment. At a critical moment, Fang Shuo contributed on both ends to help Beijing close out the game, handing Zhejiang their third straight loss!

Xinjiang vs. Sichuan. Facing a Sichuan team struggling for a win, the first quarter was evenly matched at 21-21. But the rest of the game became one-sided as Xinjiang went on a rampage with relentless offense. The next three quarters’ scores were heavily in Xinjiang’s favor: 21-12, 28-9, and 28-14. Sichuan was overwhelmed and collapsed, with Xinjiang’s balanced scoring crushing Sichuan and extending their losing streak to 18 games!

Written by / Sports Fiction