Guangdong seal regular season champions in CBA

JINAN, March 7 (Xinhua) -- Five players scored double digits to pace Guangdong for a 113-91 win over Zhejiang and secure the regular season crown in the 44th round of the 2018-2019 Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) league on Thursday.

Though Guangdong enjoyed a head-to-head advantage over Zhejiang, both sides had a tight first period with Guangdong leading at 29-21. Brandon Paul of Zhejiang rested for an ankle injury in the beginning of second period, in which Guangdong surged to a 14-point lead before the interval.

Guangdong withstood Zhejiang's rally in the next half, and led all the way to extend their winning streak to five games.

Jilin played the role of "Giant Killer" as they crushed Beijing 123-96. Earlier this season, Jilin beat Guangdong and Liaoning, top two in CBA.

Qingdao downed runners-up Liaoning 117-101 as the latters suffered from the absence of several key players like Han Dejun and Guo Ailun.

Elsewhere on Thursday, Guangsha upset Guangzhou 117-106, Shandong outplayed Shanxi 137-128 and Shenzhen beat Shanghai 98-89.