20 | Friday, April 16, 2021 HONG KONG EDITION | CHINA DAILY SPORTS

BASKETBALL Homegrown hoopsters light up CBA

Rise of domestic talent the highlight of coronavirus­free regular season as league looks to future with confidence

By SUN XIAOCHEN [email protected]

The CBA wrapped up its longest­ Our young local ever regular season on Tuesday, with players had more the growing prominence of young domestic talent and the return of minutes on the court fans to arenas during a coronavirus­ and were played free campaign giving the league plenty to cheer about. more at critical The extended 56­game regular moments this year.” season, up from 46 last year, coupled with further limits on the use of Yang Ming, import players, opened up more Liaoning head coach opportunities for Chinese talent to shine, as homegrown stars matured not surprised at all about what he’s into leadership roles once the capable of doing and the way he car­ domain of former NBA players. ries us through,” Golden Bulls head Even with prolific foreign scorers coach Liu Weiwei said of Wu’s at their disposal, the league’s top progression. two­ranked teams — defending By drafting more talent from the champions the Guangdong South­ collegiate ranks at home and ern Tigers and the Liaoning Flying abroad, the league has also wit­ Leopards — built their cores around nessed the rise of rookie players who domestic talent, such as Guang­ dare to embrace big roles. dong’s back­court combo of Hu The close competition between Mingxuan and Zhao Rui, and Liaoning’s Zhang Zhenlin and the Liaoning’s guard tandem of Guo Sichuan Blue Whales’ Zhu Songwei Ailun and Zhao Jiwei. for Rookie of the Year underlined “I am quite happy with our overall the improving quality of talent performance in the regular season, drawn from the collegiate system. especially the improvement of our Zhang, who won the award, aver­ young players,” Liaoning head coach aged 14.2 points and 5.6 rebounds Yang Ming said after his team beat for Liaoning in 53 games (43 as a the Tianjin Pioneers on Tuesday to starter) and has been tipped as a enter the postseason with a 45­9 future leader of China’s national record. team. “Our young local players had During the CBA All­Star events more minutes on the court and were last month, nine players drafted played more at critical moments from the CUBA, the country’s top this year, showing more confidence collegiate league, showcased their and improving their ball­handling a talents in the slam­dunk contest, lot. This is what we need as a 3­point shootout and the rising stars franchise looking for long­term game. success.” Sichuan forward Zhu, a CUBA This season’s league MVP vote standout from Shantou University, Clockwise from top left: Wu Qian of the Zhejiang Golden Bulls, Guo Ailun of the Liaoning Flying Leopards, and Abudushalamu (left) and was considered one of the toughest contributed 16 points and eight Zhou Qi of the Xinjiang Flying Tigers will lead their teams in the CBA playoffs as they look to dethrone the Guangdong Southern Tigers, who choices in years, with debate raging rebounds to lead the south confer­ are again the favorites after topping the regular­season standings. XINHUA online over the merits of the two fan ence to a 106­103 victory over the favorites — Liaoning’s Guo and north in the rising stars game, eventual winner Wu Qian of the ensuring he was one of the most­ leagues and elite national programs Zhejiang Golden Bulls. talked­about players on social are extending their talent search Wu, who averaged 19 points, 7.6 media over the weekend. into universities, highlighted by the assists and 3.6 rebounds in 46 Zhang, who studied and trained increasing number of CUBA players games to lead the Golden Bulls to on the varsity program at Tulane drafted into the CBA over the past third place in the regular­season University, Louisiana until he joined five years. standings, earned the most votes for hometown team Liaoning last sum­ With the playoffs tipping off this his impact on the league’s second­ mer, attributed his standout rookie week in Zhuji, where the season youngest team, which has an aver­ performance to the trust of head started behind closed doors, the age age of just under 22. coach Yang. CBA is working on detailed plans to With American forward Sylven “The first season helped me get allow more fans into arenas, having Landesberg the team’s only foreign­ familiar with the team’s style of play opened stadiums to a small number er in the first half of the season when and coach Yang did a great job push­ of spectators in the final stage of the other import players were stranded ing me forward individually, and regular season. overseas due to the pandemic, Wu collectively building chemistry with As the country continues to open honed his scoring efficiency and the team,” said the 22­year­old, a son up its sports and entertainment sec­ playmaking ability, as well as emerg­ of former Chinese women’s national tors, observers expect the CBA to ing as a leader in the locker room. team forward Wang Fang. return to its usual home­and­away “He’s been training and playing as Loosely modeled on the US col­ format, with stadiums operating at a leader throughout the season. I am lege system, China’s professional half­capacity next season.

SOCCER Fresh­faced Foden helps exorcise City’s demons

LONDON — At the fifth time of while a combi­ a powerful drive 15 minutes from asking, Pep Guardiola has guided nation of con­ time to guarantee City’s place in the Manchester City to a Champions troversial last four for just the second time in League semifinal as it saw off Borus­ refereeing the club’s history. sia Dortmund and the demons of calls and By scoring, the 20­year­old also previous quarterfinal disappoint­ defensive mis­ became just the second player ments on Wednesday. takes cost it in under 21 to score in both legs of a Attention will now turn to a semi­ three succes­ Champions League quarterfinal aft­ final clash with Qatari­owned Paris sive quarterfi­ Phil Foden er Kylian Mbappe, who he will face Saint­Germain — a meeting of two nal exits to in the semifinals. projects financed by Middle Eastern Liverpool, Tot­ “You have the feeling he is a guy investment. tenham and Lyon. who never hides,” Guardiola said of But for all the money pumped This time, though, City’s luck Foden. “He always creates some­ into City by its Abu Dhabi owners, it turned as a Foden cross was han­ thing. He is dynamic offensively, was a product of the club’s youth dled by Emre Can inside the box and defensively and in the small spaces.” academy, Phil Foden, who came up VAR did not intervene to overturn Foden also provided what City with the goods as nerves frayed for the decision. needed as he is a fresh face, unbur­ Guardiola’s men. “This competition is nice but at the dened by previous Champions Foden’s 90th­minute strike in last same time is so unfair because when League failures. week’s first leg against Dortmund you are out, it is judged a disaster Ilkay Gundogan admitted City handed City a slender 2­1 lead to when you play 11 months for the was “scared to lose something” in a take to Germany. league, FA Cup, League Cup, for every­ slow start. However, that was canceled out thing,” said Guardiola, whose side The relief at turning around what by another burgeoning young remains on course for the first ever could have been another nightmare English star when 17­year­old Jude quadruple in English soccer history. European night was evident as Bellingham’s first Champions “Today was a penalty with a hand Foden ran into the arms of Guardio­ League goal gave a Dortmund a 1­0 and maybe could be not given. We la and was swamped by celebrating lead on the night and the advantage were out against Tottenham (in teammates after the second goal. in the tie on away goals. 2019) for a hand by (Fernando) Llo­ “For the club, it is so important,” As chances came and went before rente that was not given.” said Guardiola. “We cannot deny it. halftime, Guardiola would have A missed penalty also cost City in This competition is tough mentally. been forgiven for fearing history that tie against Tottenham, but this You work for 10 months and for one might repeat itself. time Riyad Mahrez converted the goal. One mistake, you are out.” City has bowed out on away goals spot­kick. twice in his previous four seasons, Foden then took center stage with AFP