Undefeated China cruise past Qatar in battle for Group F supremacy

CHANGSHA-HUNAN (2015 FIBA Asia Championship) - China romped to an 89-65 victory over Qatar on Tuesday to storm into the Quarter-Finals of the FIBA Asia Championship as the competition's only unbeaten side.

Roared on by their own fans in Changsha-Hunan, the Far East giants went in front by as many as 16 points in the first half and 28 for the game as they clinched first place in Group F and set up a Quarter-Final against India, the fourth-placed team in Group E.

The Chinese have beaten all of their opponents, save Korea on Day 2, by double-digit margins.

China's perimeter game looked solid, with captain Zhou Peng making all three of his shots from long range and Li Gen drilling three of six.

Turning point: Qatar reduced a 16-point deficit to 40-33 with 1:25 remaining in the first half and had an opportunity to draw even closer but Khalid Suliman Abdi was off target with a jumper. China veteran Liu Wei and Zhai Xiaochuan then scored baskets in the last 30 seconds of the second quarter to stretch the advantage to 11. The Chinese carried the momentum into the second half with Yi Jianlian dunking and Zhou Peng following with a three-ball to stretch the lead to 16.

Stats Don't Lie: China got some easy points, scoring 16 in transition to none for Qatar. The tournament hosts, getting 32 points in the paint compared to just 12 for Qatar, shot 51.4 percent inside the arc for the contest.

Game Hero: China floor general Guo Ailun was a model of efficiency, making four of his five shots from the floor and scoring 11 points while also handing out three assists.

The Bottom Line: China have been playing with so much confidence since their come-from-behind win over Korea that it's difficult to see any team stopping them right now. All 12 players got minutes and five of them hit double-digits in points. Qatar won't be too disappointed because they are a genuine medal contender. Bearing in mind that Trey Johnson and Mohd Mohamed didn't play, Qatar know they can put up a much tougher fight. The Chinese will expect harder games in the knockout round.

FIBA