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Stephy Zhang

China’s women had already reached this year’s Fiba Basketball World Cup by the time they came up against the Czech Republic on Sunday, but there was no chance of their going easy.
Gong Luming’s side powered to an 84-74 victory, sealing their third win of the play-in tournament in some style, and putting the finishing touches to a qualification secured by Brazil’s 76-73 win over Mali hours earlier at Wuhan Sports Centre Gymnasium.
The win took China to second in the standings before they face the Brazilians in their final qualifying match on Tuesday.
With China guaranteed before the match against the Czechs of one of the 11 available places across four global qualifying tournaments, Gong said his side were not satisfied with just reaching the World Cup.
“We want to go further, we want to be a better team, so this game is also a good test for us,” the China coach said. “They played hard and challenged us, and things went well, things went wrong, and we tried to stay together and play together. In the future, we want to play better basketball together.”

The 68-year-old knows tougher tests lie ahead and hopes to pit his side against stronger opposition so they can work on building team chemistry and tactics.
“These high-difficulty competitions are extremely important for us,” he added. “We hope to find stronger teams during our preparation process to allow the team to continuously improve through first-hand experience of playing against top-tier teams in high-stakes matches, which will better equip us with the ability to adapt to high-intensity games.”
The coach is well aware of his side’s own failings, pointing to passing and focus as areas needing work.
“The important thing is for the five players to connect better and play with more organisation and purpose,” he said. “During these games, the veterans have been relatively stable, but the younger players showed significant fluctuations due to a lack of big-game experience.”
China opened the game with four straight points, but turnovers allowed the Czechs to keep the score close through counter-attacks, leaving China with a five-point lead after the first quarter.
A 15-4 run combining inside and outside play extended the gap in the second quarter, though the Czech Republic’s perimeter shooting cut China’s lead to seven at half-time.
Scores alternated throughout the second half. In the final quarter, the Czech Republic used three-pointers to pull within three points. But in the closing moments, Wang Siyu took control by scoring nine consecutive points to seal the victory.

Looking ahead to the World Cup in Berlin, Germany, this September, Li Yueru described every game as a “do-or-die battle”.
“I hope that in the coming months, we can truly identify and fix our problems to step onto the World Cup stage with a fresh look and give our all for a good result,” she said.
Captain Yang Shuyu noted that defensive lapses were prominent during the qualifiers, allowing opponents too many easy scoring opportunities.
“Winning depends on defence. It is a good thing that problems are surfacing; we will summarise our shortcomings as we move forward,” she said.
Han Xu added that the team navigated both advantages and setbacks to secure the win, calling it a “growth opportunity” for the squad.


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Fiba (International Basketball Federation)

Women’s Basketball World Cup: China get through qualifiers, but ‘want to be a better team’

Guard Wang Siyu (left) scored nine consecutive points to seal China’s win over the Czech Republic at the Fiba World Cup qualifying tournament in Wuhan on Sunday. Photo: AFP

China’s win over the Czechs was their third of the Fiba World Cup qualifying tournament. Photo: AFP

China captain Yang Shuyu (right) says her team were making too many defensive mistakes. Photo: AFP

China’s big four back for another shot at reaching Women’s Basketball World Cup

Han Xu (right) is back for China after the end of her season with Perth Lynx. Photo: Xinhua

Hong Kong goalkeeper ‘winning bet’ after quitting school for football

Pong Cheuk-hei is currently the No 1 for a record-breaking Kitchee side that beat Kowloon City 4-0 on Saturday. Photo: Kitchee SC

Pong Cheuk-hei is enjoying being part of a winning team with Kitchee. Photo: Kitchee SC

Pong Cheuk-hei steps out for Kitchee’s clash with Kowloon City on Saturday. Photo: Kitchee SC

Sport

Basketball

Gong Luming’s side qualify before beating Czech Republic for third win of play-in tournament in Wuhan but he says ‘tougher tests lie ahead’


Gong Luming’s side qualify before beating Czech Republic for third win of play-in tournament in Wuhan but he says ‘tougher tests lie ahead’.


Gong Luming

Women’s Basketball World Cup: China get through qualifiers, but ‘want to be a better team’

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Gong Luming’s side qualify before beating Czech Republic for third win of play-in tournament in Wuhan but he says ‘tougher tests lie ahead’

Gong Luming’s side qualify before beating Czech Republic for third win of play-in tournament in Wuhan but he says ‘tougher tests lie ahead’