China lower the boom against Lebanon

CHANGSHA-HUNAN (2015 FIBA Asia Championship) - China led from start to finish and rolled to a 90-72 victory over Lebanon on Monday to remain the only unbeaten side at the FIBA Asia Championship.

Yi Jianlian put in another impressive display with 19 points and five other Chinese players hit double figures.

Lebanon, who opened their tournament with victories in two of their first three games, will need to win their game on Tuesday against Jordan to advance to the Quarter-Finals while China will square off against Qatar in a battle for first place in Group F.

In four of their five triumphs, China have prevailed by double digits.

Turning point: With the Chinese on top 17-15, Yi buried a jumper to spark a 7-0 run that put Gong Luming's side into a comfortable lead and they stamped their authority on the game the rest of the way, leading by as many as 24 points.

Stats Don't Lie: China worked their offense well and often drew fouls that led to free-throws. The tournament hosts did much of their damage at the line, making 18 of 23 (78.3 percent) compared to Lebanon's seven-of-nine (77.8 percent) effort.

Game Hero: Yi, with China 21 points better than Lebanon when he was on the court. He is shooting 58.6 percent from the field in Changsha-Hunan.

The Bottom Line: China never looked as if they would crack once ahead by several points. With each game, the host nation seems to be getting better. Lebanon need to forget this game and start to prepare for Jordan because their knockout stage effectively begins on Tuesday.

FIBA