South Korea’s men’s basketball team fought well. The team earns a 1-1 record against Japan in an away exhibition game.
South Korea’s men’s national basketball team, led by head coach Ahn Jun-ho, fell to Japan 80-88 in the second game of the SoftBank Cup 2024 on Sunday at Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan. South Korea won Game 1 by one point, 85-84, on Friday before dropping 파워볼사이트 Game 2 to finish 1-1.
Japan did not play NBA big men Rui Hachimura (Los Angeles Lakers) and Yuta Watanabe (Memphis Grizzlies) in Game 2, but they were unable to control big man Josh Hawkins as effectively in Game 1 as they did in Game 2. Hawkinson destroyed South Korea with 34 points and 14 rebounds. It was an evaluation game for South Korea, which has no naturalized players after the naturalization of Lagunia.
Still, South Korea found an undisputed ace in Lee Jung-hyun. By the 2023-2024 season, he had developed into one of the best ball-handlers in the KBL and showed promise of becoming an international player against Japan. This is even more significant given that Japan is the top level in Asia. Lee had 26 points and two rebounds in Game 2, including six three-pointers.
Lee Won-seok added 18 points and Yoo Yoo-sang 17 points, including five three-pointers. The Korean men’s national team is not scheduled for international competition until the FIBA Men’s Asia Cup in 2025. Home and away qualifiers for the Asia Cup will resume in the fall.
