Liu Xiaoyu (No.10) of the Guangdong South China Tigers competes with Randolph Morris of the Beijing Ducks during the fourth match of their best-of-five CBA semifinal series on Tuesday in Beijing. Photo: CFP

Du Feng led the Guangdong South ­China Tigers to survival from ­being edged out of the playoff semifinal against the Beijing Ducks as they saw off the hosts 109-101 at the MasterCard Center in Beijing on Tuesday to level the series at 2-2.

It was Guangdong's first win at the arena since the teams first met in the 2012 finals.

Guangdong's executive coach Jonas Kazlauskas was absent for the game due to an ankle injury, which offered Du a chance to give direct instructions for the first time this season.

Four Tigers reached double figures in scoring, led by Zhu Fangyu with 25 points, leaving Stephon Marbury's match-high 34 points for Beijing insignificant.

Star player Yi Jianlian delivered a double-double with 21 points and 15 ­rebounds in his 36 minutes on court.

With more than six minutes to go, Du dispatched five domestic players on court, which is rarely seen in CBA games. His courage to give all players court time was considered the key to Guangdong's win.

"Everyone felt we needed to make some changes after the last game. In the previous three games, we had a big lead at first, then we were chased up," Zhu told reporters after the game.

"The rotation of players gave us time to take a rest, this was vital. We played the last quarter with energy rather than feeling exhausted."

Du  said team spirit helped the team   win.

"We did not rely on the foreign ­players," he said.

Beijing, down by as many as 11 points in the second half, trimmed the deficit with Randolph Morris' leading performance.

Morris made nine of his 21 attempts and sunk 13 of 15 free throws plus making 14 rebounds.

Former Los Angeles Lakers player Sun Yue's first and only basket of his eight attempts put the game at 80-69 before the clash went into the final quarter.

Solid defense and quality mid-shots helped the defending champions make a 10-1 run, strengthening their lead into double digits. While Zhu Yanxi and ­Marbury's continuous three-pointers lessened the gap, Guangdong managed to control the court till the end.

Min Lulei, head coach of the Ducks, expressed disappointment in his players after the game.

"We were overwhelmed by their ­vigor at our home," Min said. "We were ­outscored by 13 at rebounds, and did not do well on limiting shots from outside."

Beijing fans were castigating the ­referee, saying that Yang Maogong made bad calls, which gave the visitors easy chances to keep the lead.

The deciding game is on Thursday in Dongguan.

Global Times