Four Korean women’s professional basketball teams, including the ‘strongest’ Asan Woori Bank, won side-by-side on the first day of the 2023 Park Shinjah Cup, which has grown into an international tournament.
Woori Bank defeated Japanese powerhouse Toyota Antelopes 93-90 in a hard-fought game that went into double overtime in the tournament’s opening Group A game at Cheongju Gymnasium in Chungcheongbuk-do on Saturday.
Kim Dan-bi, who was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the 2022-2023 regular season and championship game, scored a game-high 26 points and dished out seven assists.
Park Ji-hyun, who forms a one-two punch with Kim, also had a strong game with 21 points and 14 rebounds, while Yoo Seung-hee, who joined the team from Shinhan Bank in Incheon in May, contributed 20 points from the perimeter.
In particular, Yoo Seung-hee was the No. 1 contributor to the victory, hitting valuable three-pointers at key times in overtime.
The game was a fierce tug-of-war throughout, with both teams scoring the same number of points in the first and second quarters, and Woori Bank coming up just two points short in the third.
Woori Bank seemed to have secured the win with a basket by Kim Dan-bi with 1:51 left in the fourth quarter.
However, Kiho Miyashita dramatically drew a foul on Noh Hyun-ji with four seconds left in the fourth quarter and made both free throws to send the game into overtime.
With the momentum in their favor, Toyota seemed to have the game won when Shiori Yasuma scored a breakaway basket over Hyun-ji Noh with 37.8 seconds left in the first overtime and was also awarded a free throw.
Soon after, Yoo Seung-hee responded with a one-on-one offense and a basket to cut the deficit to 75-76 with 13.2 seconds left in the first overtime. Then, after receiving a pass from Park Ji-hyun, Yoo rimmed in a three-pointer from the corner to send the game into a second overtime.
After Toyota made it 86-83 with 2:43 left in regulation on a 3-pointer by Mai Yamamoto and a basket by Kadisha Umezawa, Yoo Seung-hee hit another 3-pointer from the corner to tie the game.
Na Yoon-jeong put the finishing touches on the game with a three-point play with 30.5 seconds left in regulation.
Cheongju KB, led by Korean women’s basketball “big man” Park Ji-soo, also defeated Japanese powerhouse Aeneos Sunflowers 94-68.
Park Ji-soo played 23 minutes and finished with 20 points, six rebounds, and two blocked shots.
The WNBA’s top shooter, Kang Yi-seul, exploded for 27 points on 7-of-7 shooting from beyond the arc.
Japan’s Ramu Tokashiki, who played in the WNBA, could only manage six points and four rebounds.
Incheon Shinhan Bank defeated the Bendigo Spirit, who represented women’s basketball powerhouse Australia, 83-67.
Ace Kim Sonia exploded for 29 points, including six three-pointers, to lead the way in the win.
Forward Goo-seul added 20 points with six more threes, while Kim Ji-young handed out nine assists.
Pushed back by Bendigo’s height, Shinhan Bank was outrebounded 24-36, but fought back with its outside shooting.
Despite shooting just 32.2 percent from two-point range, they sank 15-of-15 three-pointers for a 42.8 percent success rate to sink Bendigo.
Busan BNK also defeated the Philippine National Team by a comfortable 81-67 margin.
Gunner Lee So-hee scored 20 points, while Han Um-ji and Ahn Hye-ji added 12 rebounds and nine assists, respectively.
Center Jin-an, who also scored 13 points, combined with Kim Han-byul to keep 6-foot-9 center Jack Daniel Animam at bay.
Established in 2015, the Park Shin-ja Cup is the largest ever with 10 teams from four countries competing this year and will be held at the Cheongju Gymnasium in Chungcheongbuk-do from today through Sept. 3. 먹튀검증