[Anchor]
With the opening of the Nagoya Asian Games just nine days away, the men's national basketball team secured a pleasant victory in South Korea's very first match. Ace Lee Hyun-jung exploded for 23 points, leading the team to a landslide win over Saudi Arabia.
Reporter Ha Seong-nyong has the story.
[Reporter]
Meeting Saudi Arabia again at the Asian Games just ten days after defeating them in the World Cup qualifiers last week, the national team took an early lead driven by Yeo Jun-seok's drives to the basket and captain Lee Seung-hyun's accurate mid-range shots.
Lee Seung-hyun delivered consecutive shots from similar spots and played a stellar role on both offense and defense by guarding the 208 cm tall center Alsuwailem, who towered over him by more than 10 cm.
Holding a 13-point lead at halftime, the national team allowed a comeback to within 7 points as they conceded successive fast breaks after Yeo Jun-seok was substituted due to an ankle injury early in the third quarter. However, in the moment of crisis, Lee Hyun-jung stepped up as the solver.
Lee Hyun-jung, who had been limited to 5 points in the first half, fired in three-pointers from all over and aggressively penetrated the paint, racking up 13 points in the third quarter alone.
With outer shots from Lee Jeong-hyeon and WOOSEOK added to the mix, the national team widened the gap to 27 points by the end of the third quarter, settling the match early.
With Lee Hyun-jung exploding for a game-high 23 points, and WOOSEOK and Lee Seung-hyun also recording double-digit scores, the national team delivered South Korea's first victory of the delegation in Nagoya.
[Lee Seung-hyun / Men's National Basketball Team Captain: I think it feels great to secure the first win [for the South Korean delegation]. Entering the second half, the three-point shots started falling, which allowed us to play out the game a bit more smoothly.]
Aimed at winning the championship for the first time in 12 years, the national team will play its second group stage match against Indonesia tomorrow (September 11).
(Video Editing: Lee Jae-sung)
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