TAIYUAN, China, Aug. 16 (Xinhua) -- Beijing Haidian made it through to the final match of the under-18 women's basketball sports schools tournament at China's National Youth Games on Friday. They will face up against their old rival of the group stage Jiangsu Xianlin in the final, after they defeated Jiangsu Changzhou 53-42 in the semifinal.
Beijing's semifinal opponent was Jiangsu Changzhou. They led Changzhou 14-12 in the first quarter. The Changzhou team ever narrowed the gap to one point in the second quarter, while Xue Han of Beijing scored a three-pointer and helped team Beijing earn 11 points consecutively. Beijing led 27-15 before half time.
Jiangsu Changzhou committed a number of mistakes during the third period, including shooting two air balls. Beijing enhanced their defensive strength and stretched their lead to 14 points before the final quarter.
Changzhou failed to score any three-pointers in the fourth quarter. Li Ruoxin of Beijing increased the gap back two double-digits with 52 seconds remaining on the clock. The game finished with Beijing securing the 53-42 victory, grabbing a place in the event's final.
In the other semifinal game of the tournament, Jiangsu Xianlin smashed the Wuhan team 84-57. Xianlin's Huang Kun had 15 points, plus 12 rebounds. Wang Jiahui led the Wuhan team with 24 points.
Beijing lost to Jiangsu Xianlin 77-58 in the group stage on Thursday. The capital city team will challenge its old rival again on Saturday. Enditem
