Published: December 17, 2017

Jimmer Fredette returned to form with another in a long line of monster performances as the Shanghai Sharks beat the Ty  Lawson led Shandong Golden Stars 128-111 on Sunday.

Just two days after scoring a season-low 15 points, Fredette hit the 50-point mark for the sixth time on the season as the Sharks returned to the win column. He finished with 50 points on 16-for-27 shooting from the field, including a blistering 8-for-14 from 3-point range and 10-for-11 from the foul line.

It wasn’t just a big scoring night for Fredette either as he handed out a game-high 10 assists, collected nine rebounds and recorded three steals in 43 minutes of work. It is his fourth double-double on the season where he scored at least 50 points.

Nick Minnerath also had a big game for Shanghai with 37 points on 15-for-25 shooting from the floor, including 5-for-10 from beyond the arc while adding nine rebounds in 28 minutes.

After a solid first quarter, Fredette really turned up the offensive pressure in the second using his playmaking ability. Facing double-team after double-team, he consistently found open teammates for wide open looks.

That led to a pair of Shanghai threes and two lay ups while forcing the Golden Stars to try to guard Fredette one-on-one.

That’s when Fredette started to attack.

He scored 13 points in a six-minute stretch as the Sharks turned a one-point deficit into an 11-point halftime lead. He got things going with a nifty left-handed scoop lay up followed by two free throws and another lay up. Fredette then found the range from beyond the arc with a wing three before attacking the basket and converting with a one-foot floater and a baseline lay up.

Fredette followed the same pattern in the third as he played the role of facilitator early on with two assists on 3-point shots. He then got going from the outside with three straight threes, including one where he crossed up his defender to create space before knocking down the shot from deep.

He then got back in the giving mood with a pair of assists to Minnerath for open threes followed by a bullet pass for an easy lay up.

Shandong tried to make a game of it in the fourth, but Fredette had an answer every time. He totaled 19 points in the quarter, including back-to-back threes from deep after the leopards had closed the gap to 10.

Liang Cai and Zhang Zhaoxu also reached double figures in the win with 14 points apiece as the Sharks improved to 8-9 on the season.

Yanyuhang Ding paced the Golden Stars in scoring with 32 points while Donatas Motiejunas added 23 points and 15 rebounds. Lawson chipped in with 23 points, eight assists and seven rebounds in 35 minutes.

On the season, Fredette is averaging 39.5 points on 45 percent shooting from inside the arc, 46 percent from 3-point range and 96 percent from the foul line. He also chips in with 7.1 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 2.1 steals in 41.4 minutes.

Up next for Fredette and the Sharks is a another road trip as they head to Shenzhen for a Wednesday night matchup with the Leopards who are 12-5 on the season after a 92-89 win over Liaoning on Sunday.

The Leopards are led by the impressive duo of Jared Sullinger and Keith Langford. Sullinger is having a huge season during his first season in China averaging 32.1 points, 17.5 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.7 blocks in 39.9 minutes.

Langford chips in with 17.1 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.4 steals in 27.9 minutes.

Photo credit: By Bagumba (Own work) [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)%5D, via Wikimedia Commons