ESPN -- China's MVP: Yao lead's team to Asian title

China qualifies for Athens with Yao at center

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Associated Press


BEIJING -- Houston Rockets center Yao Ming scored 30 points and grabbed 15 rebounds to lead China to a 106-96 victory over rival South Korea on Wednesday night to clinch the title in the Asian men's basketball championship and secure an Olympic berth.


Ming


The game in the north Chinese city of Harbin coincided with Chinese National Day and China was helped along by wildly cheering fans who packed the stadium.

China's Li Nan added 26 points while the team shot 67 percent from the field.

The win secured for China the sole Asian place at next year's Summer Olympics in Athens. It also served as payback for China's bitter 102-100 loss to South Korea in the final at the Busan Asian Games in October 2002.

Yao scored China's first six points and repeatedly slapped down South Korean shots and snagged rebounds. But after South Korea made a 13-3 run at the start of the fourth quarter to cut China's lead to one point, Yao moved again into offensive mode, setting the crowd on fire with a massive two-handed dunk and other shots.

he rest of the Chinese squad looked shaky for much of the game, especially inside the arc, where they missed several easy layups. Mengke Bateer of the San Antonio Spurs, also on the China team, saw little action as Chinese coach Jiang Xingquan sought to give younger players a chance to gain more experience.

Faced with Yao's dominant presence in the key, South Korea shot 17-of-40 from behind the 3-point line.

"The South Koreans are a formidable team, but China held on when challenged. The guys really stuck with it," Jiang told China Central Television after the game.

Yao, the No. 1 pick in the 2002 NBA draft, was named tournament MVP. Third place in the tournament went to Qatar, who defeated Lebanon 77-67 on Wednesday night.

That game was delayed after both teams showed up in black uniforms shirts and neither would agree to change. They finally took the court after about one hour in distinct red and blue shirts.

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