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SK, lucky to have naturalized players, lost but fought well!

Seoul SK fought back but fell short as runners-up in the East Asian Super League (EASL).

SK fell 69-72 to Japan's Chiba Jets in the 2023-2024 EASL Final Four at the HoopsDome in Cebu, Philippines on Tuesday (Feb. 10). The runner-up prize of $500,000 (approximately $660,000) was a consolation prize.

SK was desperate to win. SK had only been runner-up twice before. In 2019, they fell just one point short to China's Liaoning Flying Leopards in the EASL's predecessor, The Terrific 12. In last year's inaugural EASL, they lost 84-90 to their KBL counterparts.

SK head coach Jeon Hee-chul was wary of Ziva ahead of the finals. Ziva was undefeated in the semifinals, including six games in the qualifiers. "I watched them play," said Jeon Hee-chul. They have good offense and defense and good balance inside and outside. They have more power than us. They are not an opponent we can say we will win unconditionally. I think we're better than them," said the underdog.

Ziva actually has three foreigners on the roster. In addition to Xavier Cooks and John Mooney, naturalized player Ira Brown will also play. "If we don't have enough strength, they can create time for the three foreign players to play at any moment," said coach Jeon Hee-chul.

The team had a plan. "I'm not saying we're going to lose. It depends on how the tactics work on the day. 안전놀이터 If we utilize our strengths and control the opponent's strengths, we have a good chance of winning because it is a single game."

Coach Jeon Hee-chul entrusted Oh Jae-hyun with the defense of Chiba ace Yuki Togashi. "What I expect from Oh Jae-hyun is more defense than offense. I hope he can hold Togashi to fewer runs than he scored. (Oh) Jae-hyun has good strength and speed, so I think he can stop him well."

SK did well with their strong defense and fast offense. By the time Brown came in, the score was close, but when the three Japanese players played, it was SK's time. SK finished the first quarter 34-37. Coach Jeon Hee-chul said in an on-court interview after the second quarter, "We're playing good defense. We just got outrebounded," and diagnosed the cause of the deficit. In the second quarter, SK was outrebounded 15 to 24.

After being down for most of the game, SK started to fight back in the third quarter. Keeping Ziva within striking distance, SK finally broke through with back-to-back baskets from Jamil Warney at 47-49. They immediately tied the game, but Oh Jae-hyun hit a running three-pointer to keep the lead.

The lead didn't last long. The fourth quarter turned into another breathless seesaw game. At 57-56, Warney's shots went off the rim in quick succession, allowing the game to be tied again. For SK, a three-point lead seemed far away. Ziva continued to run away when SK followed. At 66-69, Warney failed to dribble and took over the offense. He was fouled, but Mooney made one free throw to make it a four-point game. Ahn Young-joon hit a three-pointer to keep the hopes alive.

With 26 seconds left, SK pulled within 69-70. Ziva got free throws on the final possession. Togashi connected on both to seal the game. SK took a final three-pointer, but the rim turned away.

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