[투데이★] KCC Lee Jung-hyun, who received a victory gift on his birthday, “I wanted to win an important game”

[점프볼=울산/임종호 기자] Jeonju KCC stood alone in the leading position by defeating Ulsan Hyundai Mobis’ relentless pursuit.

KCC, played by Lee Jung-hyun (34, 191cm), won the 5th round of the 2020-2021 Hyundai Mobis professional basketball Ulsan Hyundai Mobis, held at the Dongcheon Gymnasium in Ulsan on the 3rd with 85-81. In the second half of the game, the KCC seemed to widen the gap and approached the victory in a leisurely manner. However, until the end, I did not lose my concentration and laughed. The winning KCC recorded 29 wins (13 losses), and increased the gap with Hyundai Mobis to 3 games.

Lee Jung-hyun led the team victory by scoring the most 22 points (6 rebounds and 2 assists) in both teams for 24 minutes and 58 seconds on this day. In particular, he was able to solve the problem by scoring 8 points only in the 4th quarter when the opponent’s pursuit was strong.

Lee Jung-hyun, who met after the game, said, “It was an important game and I wanted to win. It was a bit easier to win, but the finish was unfortunate in the part that allowed the pursuit of the fourth quarter. We had a turnaround when we made it easy for the 4th game, but today it seems like it was good because the players concentrated all the way to the end.”

With the victory on this day, KCC increased the gap with 2nd place Hyundai Mobis to 3 games. In addition, they lead the match with 3 wins and 2 losses. So far, when calculating the goals of both teams, KCC is behind 9 points (390-399). KCC needed to win with a big score just in case.

Lee Jung-hyun said, “If your opponent hits second place and climbs up, it is a very strong team. I passed the flow while being pushed from the inside, but fortunately I am satisfied with winning without giving the atmosphere to the fourth quarter. The difference is behind, but for now, I don’t think about it, and I’ve only focused on winning.”

Lee Jung-hyun, who made a match-up with Jun-beom Jeon and Jin-soo Choi, said, “I didn’t feel much because (ex) Jun-beom and (Choi) Jin-soo both sticked a lot. There are pros and cons when a tall player blocks it, and two foreign players (Laguna, Tyler Davis) walked the screen well. The opponent’s 2v2 defense was weak, so he focused on that part. I’m satisfied that I’ve been showing myself after a long time.” We prepared to save chances on the outskirts when the help defense came in, but it seems that our advantage came from creating space. However, when I brought the flow of the third quarter, I should have pushed myself a little more, but it seems to be incomplete. I think this part will have to be adjusted more in the future.”

Lee Jung-hyun is still holding the center of the team as a captain even though his ankle is not intact.

“There are bone fragments on the right ankle, and if it is unreasonable, it hurts the ligaments. Still, everyone has this kind of injuries, so they are fully treated and rehabilitated during the season. (Jeon Chang-jin) The coach also adjusts the training, so I am trying to maintain my performance as much as possible.” This is Jeong-Hyun Lee’s words.

“No one voted us as the winners before the season,” he said. However, in the season, as we stayed at No. 1 for a long time, we fell into mannerism and played urgently, so our performance was not good recently. Still, as all players are doing well, I hope that I can play basketball comfortably in order to improve my performance, rather than sticking to my performance. I hope that (colleagues) can play basketball with ease as it affects the performance of the team when they are under pressure.”

At this pace, KCC’s championship in the regular league is strong. Although it is located at the highest position in the league, Lee Jeong-hyun pointed out what needs to be supplemented in order to win the regular league.

“I don’t think we can easily defeat any of the nine teams. When I win a streak, I have to play basketball with a lot of activity, but now my stamina is low, so sticking to the basics will have good results. The main players are young, so they won’t be able to put a burden on their performances. This is Jeong-Hyun Lee’s words.

March 3 is Lee Jung-hyun’s birthday. Lee Jung-hyun, who received the gift of victory on his birthday, said, “It’s my birthday today, so many people, including fans, congratulated me. Thanks to that, I think I was able to play well today because of my strength. I don’t remember playing on my birthday, but I think I played a good match because I met and focused on an opponent I must win.”

#Photo by Park Sang-hyuk

Jump Ball / Reporter Lim Jong-ho [email protected]

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