http://www.fibaasia.net/NewsDetails.aspx?id=755 [rQUOTEr]13/02/2011 CHN – China U16 team wins Turkish international tourney BEIJING, China / TEHRAN, Iran (2nd FIBA Asia U16 Championship): The Chinese U16 National Team’s preparations for the 2nd FIBA Asia U16 Championship later this year, where they will defend the gold medal won two years ago at Johor Bahru, got off to a euphoric start with the team posting an unbeaten record at the Turk Telecom International U16 tournament in Turkey last week. China were unbeaten for seven games on the trot capping their run with a 67-66 win over the hosts in the final. China had beaten Bulgaria 91-66, Georgia 108-35, France 69-67, fellow FIBA Asia team Iran 74-51 and Slovenia 84-62 in Group B proceedings of the Preliminary Round. In the semifinals against Germany, China won 94-90 in Triple Overtime, before the final triumph. Zhou Qi who scored 30 points and had 17 rebounds and 8 blocks in the gold medal game emerged as the star of the tournament. The 215-cm center averaged 20.9 points, 10.3 rebounds and 5.4 blocks per game. Zhou’s teammate Zhao Jiwei averaged 6.3 assists per game – including 4 in the final – to lead the stats for the tourney in that department. Zhou also had a triple double – 41 points, 28 rebounds and 15 blocks in the semifinal against Germany – also helping China tie the game on three occasions and extend the game. Iran disappoint Iran, the bronze medalists at the inaugural FIBA Asia U16 Championship at Johor Bahru in 2009, were not as successful. Besides China, Iran also lost 60-71 to Slovenia, 56-64 to Bulgaria and 42-64 to France in Group B. Their only win in the Preliminary Round, and eventually the entire tournament, came against Georgia in a 62-50 result. In the play-offs for minor rankings, Iran lost 65-71 to Romania and 66-80 to Georgia. Iran were coached by Mohsen Mohammad Shahali. Vahid Dalrizahan was the most impressive Iranian player with an average of 19.71 points and 11.29 rebounds per game. FIBA Asia[/rQUOTEr]
http://www.asia-basket.com/China/basketball.asp?NewsID=217551 [rQUOTEr]Chinese Players Excel In Tournament Statistics Feb 12, 2011 (by Arthur Volbert) Chinese players finished high in several statistical categories in the Turk Telecom International Under-16 Tournament in Ankara. Zhou Qi, the outstanding young center who dominated this tournament, was second in scoring with 20.5 ppg. He was tied for fourth in rebounds per game with 10.3. He was first in blocks with 5.4 per game two blocks per game higher than the second-place finisher. Point guard Zhao Jiwei (185-G-95) was first in assists with a 6.3 average, 1.3 per game ahead of his nearest rival. He was second in steals with 3.6 per game. Guo Xiaopeng was seventh in scoring with 16.1 per game. China's junior players have shown a vast improvement starting with the players listed as born in 1993. There was a fallow period in the 1980's while China changed from its domestic way of playing basketball to the international way of playing basketball. China players actually seemed to decrease in basketball skill while China cast off the old ways and figured out how to play in the new way. But we now may be ready to see China keep rising in the basketball world. Will it rise to where it is the equal of teams like Spain and Argentina, who continually finish near the top in international competitions? Will it be like the former Yugoslavia and Soviet Union who were a half-level above everyone but the USA? Or will it one day rival or surpass the USA's national teams? Time will tell. Today's Games: Championship China beat Turkey 67-66 Classification for 3rd and 4th Germany beat France 53-51 Classification for 5th and 6th Place Slovenia beat Russia 93-79 Classification for 7th and 8th Place Ukraine beat Bulgaria 81-69 Classification for 9th qnd 10th Place Puerto Rico beat Romania 59-51 Classification for 11th and 12th Place Georgia beat Iran 80-66 Tournament Standings 1. China 2. Turkey 3. Germany 4. France 5. Slovenia 6. Russia 7. Ukraine 8. Bulgaria 9. Puerto Rico 10.Romania 11.Georgia 12.Iran [/rQUOTEr]
Zhou Qi was posting monstrous figures in the tournament, we'll see how he develops in the next couple years. It's still too early to tell if he is the next coming of Yao Ming. Most importantly, it seems that his age is genuine.
