China recorded its first victory at the Men's Basketball World Championships, beating Senegal 100-83 on Wednesday.

Yao Ming slams as China beats Senegal 100: 83 in 2006 FIBA World Championship, August 23, 2006. (sina.com photo)
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Super center Yao Ming again led the team in scoring even though he did not play the full game. He scored 26 points, nine rebounds and three assists.

Former NBA player Wang Zhizhi contributed 19 points and eight rebounds.

The five starting players all contributed double-digit scores.

Despite being tagged as the favorite, China opened the game slowly, trailing 6-1.

Yao Ming showed his super power and fired a seven-point run to put the team back on track.

Yao also inspired his teammates as they fueled to catch up with their opponents and even took the lead at 21-19, though they soon lost the advantage, trailing Senegal  27-22  at the end of the first quarter.

Senegal extended the lead in the second quarter before China climbed back to minimize the deficit. However, too many errors took its toll on China as they continued to lag behind 45-39 after the first half.

A dramatic third quarter saw the two sides trading the lead. In the end China moved ahead to lead the game 71-68.

China further extended its lead to secure a precious win.

China will meet Slovenia tomorrow.