On the 16th, the 2019 Xichang International Women's Basketball Championship kicked off at Xichang National Stadium in Sichuan Province. The Chinese women's basketball team won the Puerto Rican women's basketball team 77:59 on the first day of the competition and made a good start.
In 2018, the Chinese women's basketball team finished sixth in the world cup and won the championship of the Asian Games in the same year. The Chinese women's basketball team is still based on the winning team of the Asian Games, which is intended to prepare for the upcoming Asian Cup and next year's Tokyo Olympic Games.
Chinese player Guo Zixuan (right) attacks with the ball in the game. Photographed by Xinhua News Agency reporter Liu Kun
The Xichang International Women's Basketball Championship attracted four teams from China, Japan, Greece and Puerto Rico. five of the four teams will have a round robin from the 16th to the 18th to finally decide the champion.
At the beginning of the game with Puerto Rico, the Chinese team showed strong strength and blossomed inside and outside. In particular, Li Yueru, who has an absolute height advantage, repeatedly succeeded in the interior line. The Chinese team soon took a 12-1 lead after the opening. Since then, the recovered Puerto Rican teams strengthened their defense, and the shooting percentage of the Chinese team decreased rapidly. On the contrary, the visiting team frequently sought breakthroughs outside the three-point line and was close to the score. At the end of the half-time, the Chinese team took the lead 30-25.
Shao ting (middle) of the Chinese team broke through with the ball in the game. Photographed by Xinhua News Agency reporter Liu Kun
After entering the second half, the Puerto Rican team still played very hard and caused casualties in the interior. With the strong fight of No. 11 member Sofia, the Puerto Rican team surpassed the score 41-40. After being overtaken, the Chinese team did not panic and played steadily. Under the leadership of Shao Ting, Li Yueru and Li Yuan, the Chinese team regained the rhythm of the game. Since then, the Chinese team became braver and braver, gradually opened the difference, and finally won 77-59.
Chinese team player Wang Siyu (right) layup with the ball in the game. Photographed by Xinhua News Agency reporter Liu Kun
In the whole game, Li Yueru got the highest 18 points and 14 rebounds. Li Yuan made 4 shots from 4 three-point shots and got 14 points. After the game, Xu Limin, head coach of the Chinese team, said that in the case of the team's incomplete personnel and difficulties in the middle of the game, the young players can adjust their mentality in time and finally win the game, which is worthy of encouragement and praise.
In the opening game ended earlier, the Japanese team beat Greece 75-54 with accurate shooting and tight defense. In this game, the Japanese team blossomed at many points. All 12 people played and contributed scores, including 4 in doubles. On the evening of the 17th, the Chinese team will meet the Japanese team.