MELBOURNE, July 9 (Xinhua) -- Zhang Ziyu and Wang Siyu combined for 43 points, but China's late comeback fell just short as Australia held on for an 84-82 victory in the second of two Women's Basketball World Cup warmup games on Thursday.
Zhang scored a game-high 25 points off the bench and added 11 rebounds, including 11 points in the fourth quarter, as the two teams produced another closely contested game after Australia's two-point win on Tuesday.
Wang finished with 18 points, nine of them in the final quarter, and had a chance to help China force overtime in the closing seconds before Australia's defense broke up the decisive play.
China led by 14 points at halftime after a dominant defensive display, but the momentum shifted in the third quarter as seven turnovers allowed Australia to erase the deficit and move in front.
Trailing 82-77 with 64 seconds remaining, China mounted one final charge. Wang made two free throws before Zhang completed a three-point play to cut the gap to 84-82 with 26 seconds left.
Jia Saiqi then came up with a steal as Australia attempted to run down the clock, giving China one last opportunity to tie the game. Wang pushed the ball on a fast break, but her pass to Tang Ziting under the basket with four seconds remaining was deflected and recovered by Australia to seal the victory.
The two games in Melbourne were part of both teams' preparations for the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup, which will be held in Germany in September. ■
