Samsung coach Eun Hee-seok’s face lit up with a smile after his first win. Sono coach Kim Seung-ki, on the other hand, had his head down again after his first win.
Seoul Samsung won 98-78 against Goyang Sono in a home game of the 2023-2024 Jungkwanjang Professional Basketball League at Jamsil Indoor Gymnasium on Sunday. After dropping their opening game to Busan KCC, Samsung won their home opener to earn their first win of the season.
Samsung capitalized on Kofi Coburn’s height in the first quarter. Coburn led the way with a 33-point, 14-rebound double-double. With Sonoe aggressively targeting the perimeter, Samsung responded with a battle under the basket. The rebounding advantage of 50:22 was largely due to Coburn. Choi Seung-wook, Lee Won-seok, and Ishmael Lane also scored in double figures to help secure the win.
After the game, head coach Eun Hee-seok said, “Today was our home opener, so I told the players before the game to enjoy themselves. I’m happy and grateful that the players had fun and enjoyed the game,” he said after the win.
Coach Eun Hee-seok said, “The KBL is highly dependent on foreign players. With a stable foreign player, the other (domestic) players have found stability,” said Eun. “I hope the players will continue to gain confidence through today’s win.” “Coburn is our first option and we need to utilize him. We were able to utilize Coburn early on,” he said.
Coach Eun Hee-seok praised his players for their even performance. “The core of the team is Lee Jung-hyun and Kim Si-rae, but we need a defense to support them. We actively used Kim Moo-sung, Shin Dong-hyuk, and Lee Dong-yeop. I’m grateful to the players who showed their commitment. They played a big role in our victory.”
“It’s my fault for the loss,” said Sono coach Kim Seung-ki after the team’s first win in the franchise. Sono was led by ace Jeon Sung-hyun with 23 points, but Jarrod Jones could only muster 13 points as he and Coburn completely lost the battle under the basket. ‘Archery basketball’ was not successful either. It seemed to burst onto the scene with five 3-pointers in the second quarter, but went cold in the second half.
Coach Kim Seung-ki said, “It’s my fault for not organizing the team. There is no excuse. We are going through a difficult season. It’s hard for me to keep my promises this year. But I will hold on to the end and try to win.”
He added, “It’s hard because of the composition of the team. Jeon Sung-hyun has been scoring a lot, but 안전놀이터 he’s not in top form yet. There are parts of our game plan that don’t work well. I’ll think about it calmly and try to end the losing streak,” he said, adding, “Among the various problems, I’m at fault for the wrong composition of the team.”