BEIJING, June 17 (Xinhua) -- Peking University lifted their third consecutive Chinese University Basketball Association league (CUBA) trophy after overcoming Tsinghua University 84-77 here on Sunday.
"It was the first time PKU and Tsinghua, China's top two universities, met in the final," PKU coach Zhang Jian said after the match. "I believe this match can show how good Chinese university basketball is."
PKU edged the first half 41-38 and the third quarter turned into an intense battle. Wang Shaojie and Zhao Baiqing combined to lift PKU into a seven point lead into the fourth quarter, though Wang Lanqin's three-pointer help Tsinghua cut the deficit to just one point at 70-69. Zhu Mingzhen responded with a three, followed by Zhang Ning and Wang Shaojie's two-pointers to give PKU a ten point advantage and ultimately the victory.
Zhang Ning scored a game-high 23 points and Wang Shaojie had 21 points and 16 rebounds for PKU. For Tsinghua, Zeng Maozhou had 19 points, Wang Zining scored 14 points and Guo Jian contributed 12 points.
"We are a younger team," lamented Guo after Tsinghua's defeat. "Only three of us had played in a final before this match. We did our best."
