Hammon, Russia downs China for bronze

Irina Osipova （L）of Russia looks to pass under pressure from Chen Nan of China （Photo credit： Quinn Rooney/Getty Images）Photo Gallery%26gt；%26gt；

（BEIJING， August 23） -- Chen Nan's game-high 26 points did not help the host team reach the podium as Russia rallied past China 94-81 in the bronze medal match of the Olympic Women's Basketball tournament on Saturday， August 23.

US-born Becky Hammon， who plays for the CSKA Moscow club and chose to compete for Russia shortly before the Beijing Olympic Games started， contributed a team-high 22 points and four assists.

Russia trailed 24-23 in the first quarter but went into the main break 52-39 thanks to 11 points from playmaker Hammon. Though the Chinese managed to narrow the margin to 11 points in the second half， they found themselves unable to shut down the sharp Russian offense and bowed 94-81.

"I feel upset. It is such a psychological fall. But we have done our best，" said a frustrated Sui Feifei of China.

"It has been 10 years （since I joined the national team）. I had thought this would be a chance （for a medal） and we wanted to go further.""

Beside Chen's 26 points， Bian Lan scored 17 points and grabbed six boards for China. Captain Miao Lijie netted 16 points and pulled down three rebounds.

Russia got double-digit baskets from four players with Hammon leading at 22 points. Tatiana Shchegoleva and Maria Stepanova sunk 15 points apiece and Ilona Korstin 11.

"I'm very happy. It was very important for us to win a medal，" said Korstin. "We came here to win the gold medal. We played an unfortunate game against the United States. But we fought for each victory， and we're happy to repeat what we did in Athens."