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China secures Olympic berth with 16th FIBA Asia title

Xinhua News Agency / Getty

The Dragons find themselves in a familiar spot atop the Asian basketball ranks.

Team China capped off its undefeated tournament run with a 78-67 point win over the Philippines before a sold-out home crowd in Changsha.

The victory gives China its 16th FIBA Asia Championship in 21 iterations of the tournament. The win also punches China's ticket to the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janiero.

Defense carried the way for the Chinese, as they held the Philippines' superstar center Andray Blatche to only 17 points on 6-of-13 shooting. Blatche, who last played in the NBA with the Brooklyn Nets, mostly opted for lazy jumpers after finding little success on the interior against former Milwaukee Bucks prospect Yi Jianlian and 7-foot-2 center Zhou Qi.

As a team, the Philippines shot 35.4 percent from the floor, while hitting just 6-of-24 3-point tries from deep.

On the other end, the Philippines' zone defense was no match for China's well-oiled attack. The Chinese played inside-and-out, first dumping the ball to Yi and Zhou in the post to invite double teams, before kicking it out to open shooters along the perimeter. The strategy paid off, as China sank 15 triples on the night.

Dynamic shooting guard Guo Ailun tormented the Philippines with a game-high 19 points on the night. Yi chipped in with 11 points and 15 rebounds, while Zhou poured in a double-double of his own with 16 points and 14 rebounds.

After the game, all three of Guo, Yi, and Zhou were named to the All-Tournament team. Yi was also awarded named as the MVP with averages of 16.7 points, 8.8 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game on 52.9 percent shooting from the floor.

China becomes the ninth country to secure a 2016 Olympic berth. As for the Philippines, it will join 17 other nations in competition for three wild-card spots at the 2016 FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament next July.

Country Qualified for Olympics via
Brazil Host
United States 2014 World Cup
Australia Oceania
Nigeria AfroBasket
Venezuela Americas
Argentina Americas
Spain/France EuroBasket
Lithuania/Serbia EuroBasket
China Asia
TBD Qualifying Tournament
TBD Qualifying Tournament
TBD Qualifying Tournament

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