Women’s basketball Asan Woori Bank lost the final game of the Park Shinjah Cup International Tournament and finished second.
Woori Bank fell to Japan’s Toyota Antelopes 65-72 in the final at Cheongju Gymnasium in Chungcheongbuk-do on Wednesday.
Established in 2015 after Park Shin-ja, who is considered a “legend of Korean women’s basketball,” the Park Shin-ja Cup was held as a tournament to discover off-season prospects until last year, but this year it was reorganized into an international tournament where even mainstream players can participate.
Overseas clubs also joined the tournament, and the prize money increased from 10 million won to 30 million won.
Woori Bank, which finished first in Group A (3-1) and advanced to the semifinals, defeated “powerhouse” Eneos Sunflowers, which has won the Nippon W-League for 11 consecutive years.
Toyota, runners-up in last season’s Japan W-League championship game, finished tied with Woori Bank in Group A with three wins and one loss, but finished second due to a worse head-to-head record.
Toyota, which had defeated Cheongju KB 70-68 in the semifinals the day before, was looking for redemption against Woori in the final. Woori Bank defeated Toyota 93-90 in double overtime on the first day of the tournament.
On that day, Woori Bank allowed its opponent to score consecutive points from the start of the first quarter, and Kim Dan-bi responded with a three-pointer.
However, back-to-back misses from Shiori Yasuma, who led the group in assists (10.25 per game), led to a 3-13 run, and they finished the first quarter trailing 17-25.
After Toyota opened the second quarter with a three-pointer, Woori Bank responded with a three-pointer from Choi Yi-sam and back-to-back three-pointers from Park Ji-hyun and Kim Dan-bi to pull within two points.
However, back-to-back threes from Yasuma and Aika Hirashita ended the half with Woori trailing 36-49.
Woori continued its frustrating run until Yoo Seung-hee, a transfer from Shinhan Bank in Incheon, scored the team’s first points of the quarter with a basket with 6:34 left in the third quarter.
Toyota hit 3-pointers from all over the place and gained momentum, running away with an 18-point lead with about five minutes left in the third quarter.
Both teams were held to 11 points in the third quarter, and Woori Bank entered the final quarter trailing 47-60.
Toyota responded with Juna Umezawa to extend their lead to 66-50 with just over five minutes left in the game.
Woori Bank fought back with back-to-back baskets from Kim Dan-bi, two free throws from Park Ji-hyun, and a three-pointer from Na Yoon-jung to pull within nine points with 2:32 left in the game.
Choi Yi-sam and Kim Dan-bi hit back-to-back 3-pointers in the final minute, but it wasn’t enough to turn the game around.
Toyota was led by Yasuma with 20 points and Umezawa with 20 points and eight rebounds.
For Woori Bank, shooting guard Kim Dan-bi, who was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) in both the regular season and championship game last season, scored a game-high 22 points, while Park “Ssangpo” Ji-hyun chipped in with 15 points and eight rebounds. 카지노사이트