The whistle cuts through the air， the orange－red basketball arcs gracefully through the sky， and the squeal of rubber against the court floor fills the air． On February 7， 2026， the Hubei Province “Sports for the New Year” sub－venue theme event， along with the Xiantao City Basketball Elite Exchange Tournament， kicked off at the city’s sports arena．
This event， themed “Sports for the New Year， Health Towards Spring， Making Sports More Warm，” aims to promote the in－depth implementation of the “Public Sports Service Improvement Project” and the “Four－to－Four Action，” enabling the public to enjoy a joyful， peaceful， and healthy Spring Festival holiday with sports．
The game started with a showdown between the Xiantao team and the Hubei LianTou team． With the referee’s whistle， the Xiantao team initiated the first attack． The basketball swiftly passed between the players， with quick pivots and wrist flicks sending the ball through the net with a crisp sound． A 10－0 mini－run by the Xiantao team set the home court on fire．
The Hubei LianTou team was not to be outdone， making fast breaks and shooting from all angles to tie the game at 15－15， prompting a timeout by the Xiantao team． Afterward， both teams engaged in a back－and－forth battle． With 50 seconds left in the first quarter， the pace of the game was frantic． Xiantao’s final possession was fouled， but they missed all three free throws and entered the second quarter trailing by six points．
Defense became the key to Xiantao’s comeback． Player No． 32， Hu Ruomu， made several steals， helping Xiantao overtake the score． After the halftime break， Xiantao’s No． 11 player， Song Yan， was fouled while shooting a three－pointer and made all three free throws， boosting his team’s morale． However， Hubei LianTou didn’t ease up， and after a brilliant assist on a fast break， they closed the gap to 65－66．
The final quarter was intense as both teams fought fiercely． Xiantao chased hard， and after drawing two fouls， they hit free throws to close the gap to 87－89． With a 2－point shot from player No． 6， Shi Dongsheng， they tied the game．
In the final 59 seconds， Xiantao gained the lead． With strong defense， they forced their opponents to waste the full 24－second shot clock． When the last shot from the Hubei LianTou team missed the basket， the final buzzer sounded， and the score was locked at 103－99， with Xiantao emerging victorious．
“Although it was an invitational game， everyone gave their best，” said coach Zhang Hao after the match． “This game is not just a New Year’s sports feast for the people of the city， but also a training exercise for the upcoming Hubei Provincial Games and the Second Hundred Strong Counties Basketball League．”
编辑：韩天武
责编：胡平安
审核：肖艳丽