BEIJING, Dec. 6 (Xinhua) -- Nanjing Monkey Kings narrowly defeated guest side Zhejiang Golden Bulls 119-116 with Joseph Young's buzzer-beater, and home team Fujian Sturgeons crashed Shanghai Sharks 124-90 on Aleksandar Kesar's first coaching match in the 14th round of Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) league on Friday.
Nanjing's Joseph Young notched a game-high 49 points, taking 23 of the home side's 31 total points in the last quarter. His teammate Hamed Haddadi also contributed a noticeable triple-double with 26 points, 21 rebounds and 10 assists.
The duo dominated both outside and inside, help Nanjing gear up early in the first quarter to establish its 12-point lead.
Zhejiang had a 10-1 run in the second quarter as Marcus Edward Denmo recovered his accuracy. A crucial timeout helped Nanjing to hold their ground, then the host team reopened the gap to 57-50.
The third quarter saw the 88-76 suppression to Zhejiang by the home side. Young and Haddadi were still unshakable as duo-attackers while their long distance cooperation was enhancing.
Nanjing got off to a slow start in the fourth quarter, giving Zhejiang a chance to reverse the scoreboard. Wu Qian of Zhejiang's last lay-up was mercilessly denied by Haddadi, then Young scored the buzzer-beater to seal the game in an incredible way.
"Young's last second three-pointer shows his talent, but I would call it as fortune," said by Zhejiang's head coach Liu Weiwei.
In another match, Fujian Sturgeons routed the visiting Shanghai Sharks 124-90 to end their six-game losing streak.
The dramatic Friday witnessed Fujian appointed legendary Serbian coach Aleksandar Kesar to replace former head coach Zhu Shilong on noon, delivering a strong performance at night and took the biggest win ever in two teams' head-to-head records.
"I only had one training session with my players. I am proud of their performance. They executed the game plan well to show our determination," noted Kesar.
Fujian opened fire beyond arc in the first quarter to lead 32-12, before the home team extended the advantage to 64-35 into the half break. The second half saw little challenges from the visitors as Fujian seal their third win of the season with 34-point advantage.
Chen Linjian hit eight 3-pointers out of 12 attempts and Ty Lawson grabbed 34 points by 22 shots for the home team, while Shanghai kept a low 40 percent shooting percentage throughout the game.
In the other two matches, Shandong Heroes stopped Beijing Royal Fighters 95-90, and Zhejiang Lions beat Tianjin Pioneers 102-93.
