FUSC forward Gu facing five-match ban for injuring opponent in WCBA match

BEIJING - Power forward Gu Yitong from the Federation of University Sports of China (FUSC) United Team was hit with a five-match ban for injuring an opponent in a Women's Chinese Basketball Association (WCBA) match.

With 8:54 remaining in the fourth quarter of the match between FUSC and Jiangsu on Sunday, Gu attempted to block Sun Li's shot from the three-point range. Sun's right foot landed on Gu's right foot and the Jiangsu forward screamed in pain.

Sources said that Sun had suffered an ankle dislocation, fracture and torn ligament.

The game was brought to an early end after the incident, and FUSC was ruled to have lost the game 20-0 after they decided to withdraw.

The WCBA announced in a statement on Monday that Gu's action was deemed unsportsmanlike, and levied a five-match suspension and a fine of 5,000 yuan (784 U.S. dollars) on the player.

The FUSC United Team was also fined 10,000 yuan (1,568 U.S. dollars) by the league's organizers.

The team made an apology toward Sun afterward.

"Out of pain and guilt, our coaching group together with Gu and other players apologize to Sun in the most sincere way, and we wish you a speedy return to the court," it wrote on China's Twitter-like social platform Weibo, adding that it would respect and follow the punishment made by the league's organizers.

"We will take a serious approach toward every game ahead," the team said.

Comprised solely of college basketball players, the FUSC United Team is participating in the WCBA league this season in preparation for next year's Universiade in Chengdu, competing only in the regular season and not being ranked in the overall standings.

Their 16 players come from six universities, with Beijing Normal University providing 10 players. The others come from Tsinghua University, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Sichuan Normal University and China University of Mining and Technology.

FUSC has a 6-5 win-loss record after 11 rounds of matches.