In the 2023 World Cup qualifying, the Chinese men's basketball team faced a life-and-death battle, and the opponent turned out to be the host Philippine men's basketball team. This game will become a shame in the history of the Chinese men's basketball team, making people sigh.
In the first quarter, the Chinese men's basketball team was in trouble, and was led by the Philippines 0-7. In order to turn the tide, head coach Jordjevic decisively sent Zhu Junlong, and the defense quickly improved, Zhu Junlong's three-point and Zhang Zhenlin's dunk helped the Chinese men's basketball team to counterattack and put the score at 9-10. However, the game was locked in a stalemate, and by the end of the first quarter, the score was still averaging 16-16.
At the beginning of the second half, the Chinese men's basketball team relied on Hu Jinqiu's score to lead again, with a score of 44-39. However, the Philippines launched a fierce attack, quickly equalizing the score at 44-44, and then Clarkson began to threaten, and the Chinese men's basketball team fell behind 48-53. Clarkson's three-pointers mushroomed as China trailed by 20 points, and at the end of the third quarter, the score was 51-73, and China was already in despair.
Clarkson's 26 points alone in the third quarter also exposed the problems of the Chinese men's basketball team in its defensive strategy, which was unprepared for Clarkson, lax defensively and barely pressed. This game has become a shame for the Chinese men's basketball team, which is unbearable to look back on.
The main reason for this defeat was the stubbornness of head coach Jordjevic, who insisted on using the same lineup and tactics, resulting in no dominance on the inside and problems with the defensive strategy. The loss was a heavy blow to the Chinese men's basketball team and also caused dissatisfaction and doubts from fans and commentators.
For more sports news and reviews, stay tuned for this author's article. The lessons of this game will become an important reference for the future development of the Chinese men's basketball team.