Newcomers and established stars to battle it out for right to play for this season's crown

BEIJING - Finally, here comes the March Madness of the Chinese Basketball Association.

After the three-month regular season and a lackluster playoff first round, the CBA has reached its semifinal stage with some new faces emerging to challenge the powerhouses.

The Beijing Ducks and Shanxi Brave Dragons, newcomers to the final four, will fight for a final berth and the right to meet the winner of last year's final rematch between seven-time champion Guangdong Southern Tigers and the revitalized Xinjiang Flying Tigers.

The opening games of the semis tip off on Sunday night at Shanxi and Xinjiang's home stadiums while Beijing and Guangdong hold the home advantage in the best-of-five semi format.

Sweeping the Tyson Chandler-less Zhejiang Lions with relative ease in the first round, regular season runner-up Beijing has it sights on the final although it has not reached this far in six years.

The team which boasted a 13-game win streak during the regular season remains wary of the Brave Dragons' American tandem of Marcus Williams and Charles Gainse.

"Their two foreign players are dangerous. And it's pretty tough for visiting teams to play in their house ... their fans are so crazy," the Ducks' coach, Min Lulei, said.

Captain Chen Lei echoed his coach's sentiments, warning his team of the prolific Williams-Gainse duo.

"It's a 50-50 battle. Their foreigners are as aggressive as ours, with much scoring ability. It's going to be a test for our defense," the 29-year-old forward said.

During the week-long break before facing Shanxi, the Ducks rested their legs but have not lost their focus or momentum.

Coach Min assembled the players to watch videos of Shanxi's first-round clashes against the Shanghai Sharks in breaks between two-a-day practices.

"I don't want the long wait to hampering our form. I have to make sure my team is in racing shape for Sunday's match," Min said.

The rivalry against Shanxi may be especially special for the Ducks' leader, Stephon Marbury, as the former NBA All-Star played with that team in 2010 and built a close bond with local fans in his first CBA season.

However, the 35-year-old, who averaged 24.2 points, 6.4 assists and 5.3 rebounds in the regular season, shrugged off any sentimentality and stressed Beijing should come out on top.

For Shanxi, which made the playoffs for first time in franchise history, No 2 scorer in the league, Williams, and third leading rebounder, Gaines, have excelled.

Still, its local young guns are the ones who need to fire against the Ducks.

The CBA's all-time leading assist maker, Lu Xiaoming, and Duan Jiangpeng proved their caliber during the 3-1 victory over the Sharks, while budding center Yan Pengfei will provide support off the bench for Gaines.

According to China News Service, Shanxi's main sponsor has offered 5 million yuan ($ 793,550) as a bonus for getting through the first round of the playoffs and will provide more if the team advances further. The price of cheapest ticket for Sunday's game has risen to 200 yuan.

In the other semi, the old rivalry of the past three seasons' finals comes earlier this season, but it looks ominous for Xinjiang.

The Flying Tigers suffered an upsetting reshuffle midway through the season when it replaced coach Bob Donewald with former mentor Jiang Xingquan and then released expensive import Kenyon Martin.

Led by the strict Jiang, Xinjiang bounced back to make the playoffs with the help of low-profile import Tim Pickett, who accrued 25.7 points and 8.3 rebounds per game after joining the team in early January.

After five exhausting games to beat the Dongguan Leopards in the first round of the playoffs, Xinjiang's legs may be tired, but Jiang is full of hope.

"A lot of troubles this season, every game is tough. But we won't give up ... even , if they (the Guangdong side) appear stronger," said the 71-year-old.

The league's dominant side, the Southern Tigers, who holds a 27-9 head-to-head record over Xinjiang, boasts an outside-shooting advantage with gunners Aaron Brooks, formerly of the Houston Rockets, national shooter Wang Shipeng and six-time MVP Zhu Fangyu. However, it's relatively young cast in the paint will face a tough battle with Xinjiang's Mengke Bateer and Tang Zhengdong.

Despite being the title favorite, head coach Li Chunjiang remains cautious.

"We didn't meet a real threat in the first round and that could make our players complacent. We need to keep our intensity and prepare well for every game," Li said.

China Daily

(China Daily 03/04/2012 page7)