No Longer Conservative! Chinese Women's Basketball Team Crush Italy by 20 Points, Media Figure Says Tactical Changes Made Him the MVP

It was truly unexpected. The strong United States team only beat Italy by 3 points, but China surprisingly defeated Italy 71-51 by 20 points, producing its best performance since the start of the World Cup. Han Xu and Yang Shuyu combined for 34 points and delivered impressive performances, while a media figure praised another person as the MVP. What happened?

As is well known, our previous game against the Czech Republic was extremely difficult. China trailed throughout the game and was still down by 5 points with more than 20 seconds left in the fourth quarter, appearing almost certain to lose. However, Czech players missed both free throws, and Yang Shuyu hit a game-tying shot to send the game into overtime. China then grew stronger as the game progressed and narrowly defeated its opponent by 4 points. Frankly speaking, China benefited from a significant amount of luck in that game. The victory did not feel convincing and could also be described as a hard-fought win, drawing criticism from media and fans after the match.

However, the game against Italy early this morning was completely different. Head coach Gong Luming adjusted his coaching approach, perhaps after listening to outside opinions, and made major tactical changes. In the previous game, China attempted few three-pointers and placed its hopes of winning on Zhang Ziyu, but she did not perform well in that match, scoring only 3 points and committing frequent turnovers. It could be said that if Zhang Ziyu had played another 5 minutes, China might have lost that game.

This time, Gong Luming did not continue with that high-risk approach. Instead, he increased the playing time of the better-performing duo of Han Xu and Yang Shuyu, keeping the pair on the court as much as possible while reducing Zhang Ziyu's minutes. Yang Shuyu and Han Xu played 33 minutes and 30 minutes respectively, while Zhang Ziyu played only 8 minutes. Gong Luming's strategy centered around Han Xu and Yang Shuyu worked very well. The two continued to cooperate effectively, with their inside-outside pick-and-roll combinations repeatedly succeeding. They scored 19 and 15 points respectively, which was a major reason China played smoothly and achieved a big win over Italy.

Media figure Bie Pao Bei Gang Zhu strongly praised Gong Luming as the MVP of the game. He said that today's MVP was coach Gong Luming! China's tactical change in this game directly helped the team secure victory. He was pleased that Gong was able to make such an adjustment in such a crucial match. This may not have been a very difficult decision, but it reflected the older generation of basketball figures' sense of judgment and overall perspective when facing major issues. Differences in basketball philosophies can be discussed later. But in major competitions, national interests come first. He thanked coach Gong for setting an example today.

The official MVP of this game was Yang Shuyu, but the media figure gave the MVP honor to head coach Gong Luming. China advanced as the second-place team in its group, and its opponent in the crossover round will be Puerto Rico. It is hoped that coach Gong Luming will continue to apply the right tactical approach, eliminate the opponent and advance to the quarterfinals. Gong Luming, Han Xu and Yang Shuyu were all major contributors today and deserve praise.