China nails down third win in row

BEIJING, April 21 (Xinhua) -- China kept its winning streak as it thrashed New Zealand 99-73 to remain atop of the standings at the six-nation women's basketball tournament here on Monday.

The host collected six points from three games to be ahead of Olympic champion the United States and world champion Australia in the test competitions of the Wukesong Arena, which will stage the Olympic basketball competitions in August.

Center Chen Nan scored 21 out of 26 points and 7-out-of-8 rebounds in the first half to stamp the tone of the game when China leading 50-28 before the break.

China, which lost the berth in the quarterfinal to New Zealand four years ago in the Athens Games, took a big step up from a 71-67 win against the same opponent on Apr. 16, in Ningbo.

"We defended Chen well in Ningbo, but great players responded to the challenge in the way that Chen did tonight. China played big players well, handled the ball well and shot the ball extremely well. I'm disappointed with our defense," New Zealand's coach Mike McHugh said.

China scored 60 points in the paint, against 26 from New Zealand, and dominated the board by 40-23.

"The match in Ningbo was the first for us after the training camp. I was nervous then and didn't play out my best. We didn't take them easy 'cause the victory five days ago. We worked harder tonight on the rematch with them and came all out," Chinese forward Liu Dan said.

China led from the very beginning and extended the margin on every quarter. Coach Tom Maher, who managed the New Zealand at the Athens Games, rested the starters for the most time of the second half.