Philippine friendlies show Korea on good form ahead of FIBA Asian Cup

Yeo Jun-seok dribbles the ball in the course of the second pleasant between Korea and the Philippines on Saturday at Anyang Sports activities Complicated in Anyang, Gyeonggi. [NEWS1]

Heo Ung performs the ball in the course of the first pleasant between Korea and the Philippines on Friday at Anyang Sports activities Complicated in Anyang, Gyeonggi. [NEWS1]

 
Preparation for the 2022 FIBA Asian Cup is in full swing for the Korean males’s basketball workforce, led by head coach Choo Il-seung.
 
Korea could also be off to a superb begin, having gained back-to-back friendlies in opposition to the Philippines in come-from-behind victories on Friday and Saturday.   
 
World No. 30 Korea beat No. 34 Philippines 96-92 on Saturday and 106-102 on Sunday. The friendlies had been performed as warm-up matches forward of the 2022 FIBA Asian Cup in Jakarta, Indonesia beginning July 12.  
 
For the Korean basketball workforce, the 2 wins come as some comfort after dropping each qualifiers in opposition to Philippines final June on the Angeles College Basis Health club in Pampanga, the Philippines.  
 
Ra Gun-ah, Heo Ung and Yeo Jun-seok had been the stand out gamers final week. 
 
Yeo was the highest scorer for the primary match, scoring 17 factors. Ra added 27 factors within the second match whereas Heo added 21 factors and Yeo added 17 factors on Sunday. Yeo spent essentially the most time on the court docket out of each groups on Sunday, enjoying for 34 minutes and 34 seconds.  
 
Nevertheless, rising star Yeo is not going to be competing with the Korean nationwide workforce on the Asian Cup, asserting a day after the 2 friendlies on Monday that he shall be jetting off to the US.  
 
Yeo doesn’t have a deal but however shall be collaborating on the so-called professional days, or argent exercise, for the G League, a present league run by the brokers to showcase their shoppers. The G League is the decrease tier league on the NBA.  
 
Yeo isn’t the primary participant to strive his hand at becoming a member of the U.S. league this season, as Lee Hyun-jung jetted off this April to enter the NBA rookie draft scheduled on Thursday, trying to turn into solely the second Korean ever to play within the prime U.S. league after Ha Seung-jin. Ha was drafted by the Portland Path Blazers within the 2004 draft, staying with the workforce till 2006.
 
With the surprising absence of ace participant Yeo, head coach Choo and the employees rapidly stuffed the void with Lee Woo-suk on Monday, fixing the 12-man roster for the 2022 FIBA Asian Cup.  
 
Heo Hoon, Lee Dae-sung, Heo Ung, Choi Jun-yong, Track Kyo-chang, Yang Hong-seok, Lee Woo-suk, Kang Sang-jae, Ra, Kim Jong-kyu, Jang Jae-seok and Lee Dae-heon have made it into the workforce.  
 
The 2022 FIBA Asia Cup runs from July 12 to July 24. The Asia Cup is held each 4 years and may have taken place in August of 2021, however was first postponed because of the postponement of the Tokyo Olympics then later postponed once more to July of 2022 to be performed in Jakarta, Indonesia, although the qualifiers befell as scheduled final June.  
 
The final time the FIBA Asia Cup befell was in 2017, when the occasion was held in Lebanon. Australia gained the trophy whereas Iran completed runners-up and Korea took third place.  
 
The Korean males’s basketball workforce had been among the many seven groups that performed within the first ever FIBA Asia Cup in 1960, when Korea completed in fourth place. Since then, Korea have by no means missed a match, and have completed among the many prime three groups on all however 5 events.
 
Korea has gained the Asia Cup twice, in 1969 and 1997. The primary time Korea gained the title in 1969, the workforce was unstoppable, beating all eight opponents that crossed their path. In 1997, Korea confronted five-time title holders and defending champions on the time China within the semifinal. Korea had a document of dropping 4 occasions to China within the earlier 5 Asia Cup finals. However Korea beat China within the 1997 semifinal by six factors after which went on to beat Japan within the finals to clinch their first title in almost 30 years.  
 
Korea was capable of qualify for the continental cup final June after ending second in Group A after Philippines. Indonesia completed third and Thailand fourth.  
 
That is the second time that Indonesia has hosted the occasion. The final time the FIBA Asia Cup was held in Indonesia was again in 1993.
 
This time 16 international locations – hosts Indonesia, defending champions Australia alongside Bahrain, China, Taiwan, India, Iran, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Korea, Lebanon, New Zealand, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia and Syria – shall be competing. Korea is positioned in Group B alongside Taiwan, China and Bahrain.  
 
Group stage matches begin July 12 when Korea will first face China adopted by Taiwan on July 14 and Bahrain on July 16.  

BY YUN SO-HYANG [yun.sohyang@joongang.co.kr]