QINGDAO, June 20 (Xinhua) -- The Zhejiang Lions smashed the Nanjing Monkey Kings 112-95 in the first match as the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) league resumed after a 151-day suspension in Qingdao, Shandong province on Saturday.
Zhejiang built a 34-25 lead in the first quarter, as Zhao Yanhao scored 11 points and Sun Minghui contributed eight points.
Nanjing narrowed the gap to only one point in the second quarter, but Zhejiang launched a 7-0 run and regained the advantage.
Led by center Hu Jinqiu, Zhejiang continued to extend the gap in the third quarter and established a 20-point advantage after Zhao Yanhao's three-pointer.
In the final quarter, Nanjing still couldn't find an efficient way to fight back and were ultimately handily beaten.
Hu Jinqiu scored a game-high 26 points and 17 rebounds for Zhejiang, Sun Minghui contributed 20 points and Zhao Yanhao had 22 points.
For Nanjing, Li Hongpeng got a team-high 23 points, Joseph Young pocketed 15 points and Hamed Haddadi finished with 14 points.
"I am satisfied with our game, especially the rebounds and defense. Every player did a great job after a five-month suspension of the league," said Zhejiang head coach Li Chunjiang.
"The main reason for our loss is the rebounds, and we will improve it in the following games," said Cui Wanjun, coach of Nanjing.
The CBA season was halted on February 1 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The remaining matches will be played behind closed doors in a championship-style format in Qingdao and the southern city of Dongguan in Guangdong province. Enditem
