By: Jay Yeomans

Published: December 17, 2018

Jimmer Fredette delivered a monster double-double (his first of the season), but it wasn’t enough as the Shanghai Sharks dropped a 117-111 decision to the Guangzhou Long Lions on Sunday night.

The former BYU guard struggled to find the range for much of the night, but still finished with a team-high 37 points on the strength of 11-for-13 shooting from the foul line, but connected on just 30.3 percent of his shots from the floor and 30 percent of his attempts from beyond the arc. Fredette did make up for the lackluster shooting night in other ways, as he recorded a game-high and season-best 15 rebounds (four on the offensive end) while handing out three assists and collecting a pair of steals in 43 minutes on the floor.

Fredette put up most of his numbers in the second half as the Sharks tried to keep pace in the tough road contest. He managed 23 of his 37 points in the final two quarters as well as all but two of his rebounds.

Kyle Fogg answered with a huge night of his own for the Long Lions, registering 43 points on 13-for-30 shooting from the field and 15-for-18 from the foul line. He added 11 assists and 10 rebounds in 45 minutes for his third tripe-double of the season.

Fogg’s massive output was key for the Long Lions who got just eight points and nine rebounds out of fellow American import Marreese Speights.

As for the Sharks, they got a great game from Luo Hanchen who had a season-high 26 points on 11-for-15 shooting from the field including makes on both his attempts from beyond the arc.

Shanghai also got a solid outing from Luis Scola who totaled 20 points on 50 percent shooting from the field and 5-for-8 from the foul line while adding six rebounds and four helpers in 28 minutes.

With the loss, the Sharks drop to 13-7 on the season and into a tie for sixth place with the Xingjiang Flying Tigers.

Through 20 games, Fredette is third in the CBA in scoring, averaging 37.9 points a contest on 48.1 percent shooting from the floor, 42.9 percent from 3-point land and 94.3 percent at the free-throw line. He also chips in with 6.2 rebounds, 6.0 assists and a league-leading 3.5 steals in 41.2 minutes.

Up next for Fredette and the Sharks is a battle with the Shenzhen Leopards who are one game ahead of them in the CBA standings with a 14-6 record. The Leopards have performed well of late despite losing key import player Jared Sullinger who has missed the last five games.

Kenny Boynton has stepped up his production in Sullinger’s absense and is averaging 25.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.3 assists. He has got some help from Dwight Buycks who is averaging 22.6 points, 5.2 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 2.2 steals since joining the lineup five games ago.