Joseph Young's 60 points can't stop Nanjing losing to Liaoning

QINGDAO, China - Although Joseph Young scored a fantastic 60 points, his Nanjing Monkey Kings still lost to Liaoning Flying Leopards 120-107 in the 2019-20 Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) league here on Tuesday.

This was the second straight victory for Liaoning after the club replaced its coach.

Liaoning launched an 8-0 run and expanded the difference to over 10 points in the middle of the first quarter. Young started to pick up points and helped Nanjing narrow the gap to five points.

After two three-pointers from Cong Mingchen and Zhao Jiwei, Liaoning enlarged the deficit to 11 points before the first half ended.

Nanjing tried hard to come back into the game in the next two quarters, only to see Flying Leopards' shooters make straight baskets beyond the arc to maintain their advantage.

After a three-pointer from Liu Zhixuan, Liaoning sealed the victory.

Guo Ailun scored a team-high 31 points and nine rebounds, O.J. Mayo had 30 points and center Han Dejun contributed 19 points and 15 rebounds.

Besides Young's 60 points, Hamed Haddadi grabbed 19 points and 18 rebounds, and He Jinjia finished with 10 points.

"Although Joseph Young scored 60 points, we managed to keep the other players from scoring. Our players did a great job," said Alejandro Martinez, assistant coach of Liaoning.

"Liaoning is a powerhouse of the league, and there is a big gap between Nanjing and Liaoning. We always fell behind tonight, but our players tried hard to come back. They did their best," said Cui Wanjun, coach of Nanjing.