Veteran Hu Weidong was sidelined on the bench, but Jiangsu still triumphed over a lackluster Bayi 109-68 at home.

Liu Yudong of Bayi also missed the game.

Jiangsu took the command just minutes into the game after a 13-2 surge, forcing the rivals to call their first timeout.

However Bayi showed no hint of coming back and the score was at 62-34 after the first half.

Jiangsu stepped up their offensive in the third quarter and extended the gap to 44 points at the end of the period, grabbing the victory in advance.

Jiangsu has consolidated its front-runner place in the south conference, while Bayi still takes the third despite the rout.

In other matches, Shaanxi lost to Guangdong 103-113, while Shanghai beat Zhejiang 104-98.

In the north, Liaoning tops the tally after a win over the second-placed Jilin 131-96, while Henan lags at the bottom as they conceded a 95-107 loss to Beijing.

(CRI February 3, 2005)