Jiangsu stay unbeaten and second after 97-93 win at Ningbo

How Jiangsu's fast start kept them second in the CBA table

Jiangsu Dragons stay second in the Chinese CBA at 2-0 after winning 97-93 at Ningbo Rockets, built on a 27-21 first quarter. Ningbo drop to 1-1 and sit 12th of 20.

Jiangsu share their perfect record with Qingdao, Beijing Royal Fighters and Sichuan, the four unbeaten sides at the top after round 2. Ningbo's form now reads one win followed by one loss.

How did Jiangsu beat Ningbo 97-93?

Jiangsu won it in the opening quarter and then matched Ningbo for the rest of the night. They took the first period 27-21, and the last two quarters ended level at 29-29 and 16-16.

Ningbo won the second quarter 27-25 but never found the run to overturn the early deficit. Hao Fu's 15 rebounds off the bench gave Jiangsu extra possessions, and he committed no turnovers in 26 minutes.

Kyler Edwards added 18 points in 20 minutes as a reserve, including 6/9 free throws. That second-unit scoring counted in a game settled by 4 points.

Sharife Cooper's 27 points against Ningbo

Sharife Cooper decided the game with 27 points and 7 assists in 31 minutes. He was the top scorer on the floor and posted the best PIR of the night at 21.

His scoring came from everywhere: 4/10 inside the arc, 4/9 from three and a perfect 7/7 at the line. Those free throws carried real weight in a 4-point finish.

The one blemish was 6 turnovers, which helped keep Ningbo within reach. Hao Fu, ranked 70th of 141 by TeamKeys Rating last season, supplied the tidy work alongside him.

Why Ningbo came up short despite Gabe York's 20 points

Ningbo lost despite Gabe York scoring 20 points off the bench, with 5/10 from three. Their two highest-rated players fell short of their usual production.

Jordan Mickey, ranked 3rd in the league by TeamKeys Rating last season, had 11 points and 6 rebounds against averages of 19.4 and 11.2. He blocked 4 shots but also turned the ball over 4 times.

Quinndary Weatherspoon, ranked 5th, scored 18 against a 22.4 average and went 0/4 from three, though he made 10/13 free throws. Angjun Duan added 19 points and 4 steals, well above his 10.1 average.

Who do Jiangsu and Ningbo play next?

Ningbo play Fujian Sturgeons on 22 October, the day after this defeat. Jiangsu meet Beijing Royal Fighters on 23 October in a game between two 2-0 teams.

That fixture puts second against third in the early table, with a perfect record at stake for one of them. Ningbo, meanwhile, need a result against Fujian to start climbing from 12th.