BEIJING, Jan. 25 (Xinhua) -- Defending champion the Zhejiang Lions and the Shanghai Sharks both had winning streaks snapped on Sunday in the 19th round of the 2025-26 Chinese Basketball Association league regular season.
Visiting Jinan as the CBA leader with a 16-2 win-loss record, Zhejiang suffered its first loss in eight games, falling 93-87 to the Shandong Heroes.
Trailing 56-32 at halftime, the Lions fought hard to cut the deficit to 89-83 with one minutes and 31 seconds remaining. After Gao Shiyan made two free throws to push Shandong 93-85 ahead, Sun Minghui pulled Zhejiang within 93-87 from the line, but there were no further scores.
Marquese Chriss had 23 points, 11 rebounds, four steals and three assists to spearhead five Shandong players in double digits, while the Lions were led by Barry Brown Jr's 38 points.
The Zhejiang Golden Bulls ended Shanghai's four-game winning streak by edging the Sharks 85-82 for its first win in four games.
Zhang Hongshuo had a three-point play and added a dunk to give the Golden Bulls an 85-80 lead with 47 seconds left. Kyle Fogg pulled Shanghai within 85-82 ten seconds later, but Li Hongquan missed a three-point attempt towards the end to surrender the game to Zhejiang.
Zhang shot 4-for-4 from the field to finish with nine points and five rebounds for the Lions, who were led by Brandon Randolph's 19 points.
"It's a difficult time for us, as we've lost three games in a row and dealt with injuries. The coach trusts the young players, including me, and kept us on the court at the end of the game, so I'm very happy that we helped the team secure the victory," said Zhang, 24. "We will keep fighting and try to win more games."
Elsewhere on Sunday, the Shenzhen Aviators beat the Nanjing Monkey Kings 111-88, the Fujian Sturgeons routed the Sichuan Blue Whales 118-82, the Guangzhou Loong Lions edged the Qingdao Eagles 80-78, the Jiangsu Dragons defeated the Ningbo Rockets 86-84, and the Xinjiang Flying Tigers beat the Liaoning Flying Leopards 78-59.
On Saturday, the Beijing Royal Fighters defeated the Beijing Ducks 88-82, the Guangdong Southern Tigers beat the Shanxi Loongs 107-97, and the Jilin Northeast Tigers edged the Tianjin Pioneers 96-93.
Zhejiang leads the standings at 16-3, followed by Shanghai and Guangdong at 15-4. ■
