China breeze past hosts Thailand for third straight victory

BANGKOK, Thailand (FIBA Asia U18 Championship for Women 2016) –   China had no trouble at all disposing of hosts Thailand, 86-58 in the FIBA Asia U18 Championship for Women 2016 in Bangkok, Thailand. The reigning Champions led from the get-go and never let up to win it in the end by a 28 point margin.

Turning point: Already firmly on the front foot and possessing a double-digit lead after the opening ten minutes of action, China ruled out any notion of becoming the victim of a surprise with a one-sided second period.

Stats don’t lie: Both teams knew how to take advantage of their benches with the Thai bench scoring 29 points and the Chinese 28, and they benefited almost equally from turnovers to score 15-18. What gave China the upper hand in the game was their 44% field goals compared to Thailand’s 29%, in addition to the rebounds, 44-29 in favor of China.

Game hero: Xu Han was terrific and didn't miss a single shot after going a perfect eight of eight from the floor for 17 points as well as 6 rebounds. Li Yueru, meanwhile, recorded a double-double with 17 points and 14 rebounds.

The bottom line: China want everyone to know that they are serious about keeping the title for a 4th consecutive edition. Their height advantage over the rest is obvious and it's worth to see how they'll do when they face rivals and contenders Japan on Tomorrow.

FIBA