In the final seconds of a blowout game, Chinese international Yi Jianlian stayed in the game trying to score an easy layup to break his career high 42 points. Unluckily, the easy shot didn't go in and the buzzer sounded.

But it didn't upset Yi at all. He still gathered at mid court with his Guangdong Southern?Tigers teammates to celebrate their 98-65 blowout win over the lower Shanghai Sharks.

On the evening before flying to Italy, Yi Jianlian tied his career high with 42 points in 39 minutes along with 13 Rebounds receiving a standing ovation from the home crowd. Tomorrow(Jan 11th 2007), Yi Jianlian will fly to Italy? representing his hometown Shenzhen to bid for the 2011 Universiades.

Yi got going early in the first quarter. His hot shooting helped his team to build an early 9:0 lead. Yi finished the quarter with 18 points and 5 Rebounds. It seemed that Yi just couldn't miss. Seconds before the buzzer sounded for the first quarter, Yi got the ball in the air after teammate Wang Shipeng's missed layup and slammed it in. This move brought all the home fans on their feet.

Mid way through the second quarter, Liu Wei, as the only Shanghai Sharks player who is on the Chinese national team, sprained his ankle on a layup. That pretty much signaled the end of Shanghai Sharks chances for a comeback. Yi Jianlian went on with his hot shooting early in the third quarter and helped Guangdong Tigers build a comfortable 30-point lead.

After making 18 of his 23 shots tonight, Yi Jianlian said, "My shooting percentage is pretty high today. I tried to be very aggressive."

As he will miss at least 3 CBA games due to his trip to Italy, Yi also sent his best wishes to his teammates. He said, "I hope my team can play well. I'll try my best to come back for the important match-up against Jiangsu Dragons."

After this easy win, Yi's Guangdong Southern Tigers tops the CBA Standings with a 17-3 record. Jiangsu Dragons ranks No.2 in the CBA with a 16-3 record.

(fiba.com January 12, 2007)