Dezmine Wells of Liaoning Flying Leopards dunks during the playoff 2nd round match against Xinjiang Flying Tigers at the 2024-2025 season of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) league in Shenyang, northeast China's Liaoning Province, April 13, 2025. (Xinhua/Pan Yulong)

BEIJING, April 15 (Xinhua) -- The defending champion Liaoning Flying Leopards moved one step closer to the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) semifinals with a 105-96 win over the short-handed Xinjiang Flying Tigers on Tuesday night, taking a 2-0 lead in their best-of-five series.

Already missing several key players, Xinjiang was dealt another blow when their captain Abdusalam Abdurexit was ruled out due to a neck injury suffered in Game 1. The team also remained without Li Yanzhe, Zhao Rui, Qi Lin, and Sindarius Thornwell, leaving them with five absences.

Liaoning, playing at home, capitalized early with a dominant performance led by Zhang Zhenlin, building a lead that stretched to as many as 23 points.

The young Xinjiang squad refused to fold.

In the fourth quarter, rising stars Xirzat Samat and Elfrat Muhtar sparked a spirited comeback, hitting back-to-back three-pointers to cut the deficit to just three points. However, veteran Kyle Fogg responded with a timely basket for Liaoning, and Xinjiang's offense stalled in the closing minutes.

Zhang finished with 18 points for Liaoning, while Elfrat led all scorers with 25.

Yang Hansen (2nd R) of Qingdao Eagles makes a layup during the quarterfinal matchup against Zhejiang Lions, April 15. (Xinhua/Jiang Han)

In another quarterfinal matchup, an upset unfolded as the Zhejiang Lions fell 116-96 at home to the Qingdao Eagles, despite the return of star guard Sun Minghui.

Qingdao's foreign duo, Jordan Mickey and Quinndary Weatherspoon, dominated throughout, combining for 65 points. They led a decisive second-quarter run, outscoring Zhejiang by 33-14 in the frame and maintaining control the rest of the game to tie the series at 1-1.

Sun struggled in his return, shooting just 2-for-11 from the field and finishing with seven points.