2026 World Cup: Xu Han's Double-Double Leads China Past Italy, 71-51

China controlled the game from start to finish to beat Italy 71-51 on September 7 at Max-Schmeling-Halle in Berlin, a Group Phase win in which Italy never once held the lead and China was in front for all but 21 seconds of the contest. Xu Han (211-C-1999) anchored the effort with a double-double of 19 points and 10 rebounds in 30:23, shooting an efficient 8 of 11 from the field and a perfect 2 of 2 from three, good for a 24 efficiency rating and a plus-12.
China built the bulk of its cushion early, spanning the end of the first quarter into the second with an 11-0 run over 6:06 that turned a 14-7 lead into 25-7, with Ziyu Zhang (223-C-2007) scoring 8 points on perfect shooting and grabbing 2 rebounds during the burst. The lead only grew from there, eventually reaching 25 points, Italy 21 to China 46, with 8:02 left in the third quarter, the largest of the game.
Italy finally found some life in the third, stringing together a 10-0 run in just 2:27 that cut a 25-point deficit to 15 (46-31), a collective push without a single standout performer. But China quickly reasserted control and closed the game out at 71-51, with the lineup of Manman Zhang (172-PG-1997), Xu Han, Xinyu Luo, Shuyu Yang (182-F-2002) and Mingling Chen (192-F/C-2000) proving especially effective, posting a plus-9 across 10:40 together.
Shuyu Yang backed up Xu Han with 15 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists in a team-high 33:06, posting a game-best plus-18, while Siyu Wang (175-G-1995) filled the stat sheet with 5 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals for a plus-17. Matilde Villa (171-SG-2004) led Italy with 15 points on 6-of-11 shooting and 3 of 4 from the line, but got little sustained support in a losing effort.