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China talent rates European game: 'Excellent!'
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They started their Thursday at 9 a.m. in Shanghai and landed in Venice at midnight, with two hours on a bus still before they could sleep. The four players representing the Chinese Basketball Association at the ULEB Summer League in Jesolo, Italy woke up on Friday, fit in a short practice with their new free agent teammates from around the world, and then had to play Friday's first game in the early afternoon. It took them all of one quarter to get accustomed to their surroundings, and by the time the final buzzer sounded, this much was clear: these guys can play! From the second quarter onwards, the Chinese contingent showed pride in their team name until CBA had beaten the ULEB Cup free agents 80-78 in a thriller. A quick and feisty point guard, Xudong Luo, played some key minutes as his team got back in the game and then Sizhang Wang used his feathery shooting to lead his new squad to victory with 18 points. When he was finished, Wang had a one-word opinion of European basketball: "Excellent!"
It was quite a show for the Chinese quartet considering that Wang, Luo plus big men Ligang Wang and Fei Peng had spent much of the previous day in transit after visa problems delayed their departure from China. None had ever been to Europe before, nor had any of them played before against European competition. At 23, Sizhang Wang is the oldest of them: he has previously been a national team player for China at junior levels. He also took advantage of the recent World Championships in Japan to learn from European players.
"Yes, I studied European players every chance I got during the World Championships," he said after Friday's game. "I made sure to watch all the matches of European teams that I could."
Getting on the floor in Jesolo, however, gave him a true taste for European basketball.
"The atmopshere is totally new for me here in Europe," he said. "There's more emotion and excitement on the floor as compared to Asia. I had to adjust to the aggressive, physical play and attitude. They are very serious and there is intensive cooperaiton between the players on the team, too."
He and his compatriots adjusted quickly. Sizhang Wang's 6 points in 2 minutes early in the second quarter helped put the CBA team in control for awhile on the way to a 39-27 halftime lead. It was a close game again by the time he returned in the third quarter and kept his team close with a 10-point outburst, including a pair of nothing-but-the-net triples as the third quarter ended 53-54. After the CBA team again fell behind by 9 points early in the fourth quarter, Xudong, who is 19 years old, helped CBA rally with a big three-pointer of his own.Sizhang Wang buried his third from downtown to make it 72-74 with just over 2 minutes left, enough time for CBA to pull out the victory.
"I was a little tired," Sizhang Wang said. "I guess I was playing about 70 or 80 percent. It took awhile for me to get used to the ball. I'd say my shooting was about the same, 70 percent comfortable."
Altogether, Sizhang Wang finished with 19 points in just 23 minutes, with only a couple misses and perfect foul shooting. Xudong added 3 rebounds and 3 assists in his 14 minutes. Ligang Wang added 3 points and 3 rebounds in 13 minutes. Fei Peng played 11 minutes without scoring.
"I was really impressed by all the Chinese guys," Andrija Gavrilovic, the CBA team coach and assistant at Unicaja, said. "They arrived at midnight, had a short practice early in the morning and then played a good game. They also made a good effort to communicate with the other players even though they don't speak English. Sizhang Wang showed great touch and played like he had been with his teammates for a lot of time, taking important shots and doing little things right."
Besides tiredness and an unfamiliar ball, the Chinese players had to adjust to language barrier, teammates they met the same morning and the fact of playing a highly competitive game in what were, almost literally, their first steps ever in Europe.
"With a short training, can only get a little feeling for the team, so that was another different circumstance," Sizhang Wang added.
His excitement about the opportunity of playing in the first ULEB Summer League made up for his tiredness, he said.
"I'm very excited to be in Europe for these games," Sizhang Wang said. "It is the first time for me to cooperate like this with so many European players."
His overall impression of European basketball after one game?
"Excellent," Sizhang Wang said. "I really enjoy the feel of basketball in Europe and the emotional way of playing they have here. Chinese players should study the European game."
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Euroleague.net
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