The Anyang KGC has advanced to the finals of the Korean Basketball League championship for the first time ever by beating the KT SonicBoom 85-64.
Chris Daniels scored 30 points and grabbed 11 rebounds to help his team edge passed the SonicBoom in the second round of playoffs on Saturday.
Yang Hee-jong, who averaged 5.7 points in the previous three games, scored 18 to help KGC win the best-of-five playoff series 3-1 in front of more than 12,800 home fans. Yang scored 13 of his 18 points in the third quarter.
The Anyang KGC’s Kim Il-du shoots during the KBL playoff game against the Busan KT on Thursday. (Yonhap News)
Meanwhile, KT’s Park Sang-ho led the visitors with 19 points before limping out of the game due to an injury in the fourth quarter.
“We have rewritten the team history. I’m very glad and proud of our players,” KGC manager Lee Sang-bum said after the game.
With Thursday’s victory, the KGC, which finished second in the regular season this year, will play in the championship finals for the first time in its history.
Second-seeded KGC is now set to face favorite Dongbu Promy, which knocked off the Mobis Phoebus in the playoffs. The first game of the best-of-seven championship final series is scheduled on Wednesday at the Dongbu’s home in Wonju, Gangwon Province.
“We’ve gained good momentum from the playoffs. We believe we can play well in the finals,” Lee added.
By Oh Kyu-wook (596story@heraldm.com)
koreaherald@heraldcorp.com
