[점프볼=김용호 기자] Woori Bank did it again.
Asan Woori Bank won 55-29 in the final game of the regular league against KB Kookmin Bank’s Liiv M 2020-2021 women’s professional basketball Busan BNK held at the BNK Center at Spowon Park in Busan on the 21st. With the victory on this day, Woori Bank erased the last magic number of the regular league championship. Woori Bank, which returned to No. 1 in the regular league amid the early ending due to Corona 19 last season, took the first place again this time while digesting the full-time season, protecting the pride of the strong team.
It was really the process of becoming number one, full of twists and turns. Woori Bank had a lot of concerns from before the season. In particular, when the foreign player system was temporarily abolished, there was an eye on whether Woori Bank, which does not have an authentic big man, can become a counterhorse to the KB Stars that Park Ji-soo endures. A lot of bad news hit me during the season here, but Woori Bank ended up in the top spot. Let’s look back at Woori Bank’s regular league timeline, which became stickier as the days passed.
October 10, 2020 vs KB Stars: Park Hye-jin’s departure
Woori Bank announced the start of the regular league in Cheongju after being designated as the official opening game of KB Stars this season. In the situation where the first game was played in the home of a strong rival, Woori Bank already had a vacancy due to Choi Eun-sil’s ankle injury during the off-season Park Shin-Ja Cup. However, from the first game of the season, the injuries were hit again. Captain and ace Park Hye-jin stepped back to the bench without running in the first quarter due to a sole injury. Worried by the fact that Woori Bank has lost one of its strongest weapons. One, the worries were nothing but tiring. Woori Bank started the season with an exhilarating victory of 71-68 while discovering a new card named Kim Jin-hee.
●October 24, 2020 vs Hana One Q: A natural enemy relationship with brakes
It was Woori Bank that passed the crisis before the opening, but at the beginning of the season, Woori Bank showed a weak appearance in the home. Woori Bank, who lost against Shinhan Bank, which was their first home game of the season, brought Hana One Q to their home 9 days later. For Hana One Q, Woori Bank has been a fear. This is because he is an opponent who has won 26 consecutive losses in the regular league. However, there was no momentum of the natural enemy on this day. Woori Bank, whose error took hold of the stretch, could not prevent Kang I-seul and Shin Ji-hyun’s Ssangpo, and could not continue the record of winning streaks. It was very awkward for Woori Bank, who had reigned as a strong team, to lose home in a row. Even after that, Woori Bank was hit from home to BNK, and it wasn’t until the fourth game that they could report their first win against Samsung Life Insurance.
December 14, 2020 vs Samsung Life Insurance: 10 wins in the season
In December, Park Hye-jin, who had been waiting for Woori Bank, returned. At the beginning of the season, there was a rapid growth of Sonia Kim and Jihyun Park in a cluttered atmosphere, and Jinhee Kim was also taking a place as a point guard little by little. With the ace returning here, Woori Bank began to rise. Eventually, on this day, he showed a terrifying appearance of running 7 consecutive wins against Samsung Life Insurance, and preoccupied 10 wins in the season by overtaking KB Stars, which formed a joint first place.
December 28, 2020 vs Hana One Q: Kim Jong-un’s season out
It was Woori Bank, which preoccupied 10 wins, but after losing to KB Stars, Woori Bank fell back to second place. Unfortunately for them, news of the injury came again. On December 21, in the fight against Shinhan Bank, Kim Jong-un injured an ankle while stepping on the foot of Han Um-ji during the landing process after shooting. Fortunately for Woori Bank, Kim Jong-un’s gap did not seem to be prolonged as there was room for a break in the economic schedule. However, at the end of 2020, Kim Jong-un collapsed again in the away game against Hana One Q. Stepping on Park Ji-hyun’s foot in the process of landing after breaking through the bottom of the goal at the end of the first quarter. Kim Jong-un visited several hospitals for accurate diagnosis and treatment, but the news that finally came back was surgery and season out.
●January 1, 2021 vs KB Stars: The atmosphere has been weakened from the new year
Woori Bank has to go through the remainder of the 2021 schedule without Kim Jong-un. By the way, from the first day of the new year, the opponent we had to meet was KB Stars, the No. 1 competitor. And Kim Jong-un’s gap was certainly big. Sonia Kim, who took on the role of the pillar this season, was strong, but it was not enough to block both Park Ji-soo and KB Stars shooters without Kim Jong-un. In the end, Woori Bank lost 58-74 on this day, and seemed to be slightly distant from the competition.
●January 21, 2021 vs KB Stars: Overcame the injury blank again
Woori Bank, who had been able to tie the match against KB Stars in the fourth round (2 wins and 2 losses), visited Cheongju again after three weeks. But on this day too, Woori Bank had to go to the game with the news of the injured defection. Choi Eun-sil only escaped due to an injury. As Kim Jong-un and Choi Eun-sil were away at the same time, the shoulders of Sonia Kim and Rahm Sung were very heavy in the forward line of Woori Bank. However, in the end, Ace survives. On this day, Park Hye-jin exploded 24 points in the captain’s showdown with Kang Ah-jeong, proving what a hard carry is really. It was a game in which the competition between Woori Bank and KB Stars became more chaotic.
●February 10, 2021 vs KB Stars: I thought it was a solid…
Woori Bank prepared for the final confrontation in the home after regaining the edge with 3 wins and 2 losses. In the meantime, Eun-sil Choi also returned and was in good condition, and Woori Bank had a golden opportunity to solidify its dominance in the No. 1 competition. And in the end, Woori Bank’s potential worked. Woori Bank, which was a little behind in the first quarter, ended the first half with a tie, and in the second half completely dominated the jeonse. Park Hye-jin’s reading, who poured a whopping 30 points, and PR Ram and Choi Eun-sil’s three-point shot. Thus, Woori Bank has secured a 4-2 loss advantage over KB Stars. With this victory, the number 1 in the regular league was ‘2’.
●February 18, 2021 vs. Hana One Q: Rush to the edge of the cliff
Woori Bank, after all confrontation with KB Stars, defeated Shinhan Bank and reduced the magic number to 1. If we defeated Hanawonkyu on this day, a perfect scenario was possible, in which the first place was celebrated in the last home game. However, was that possibility rather a burden? Woori Bank still focused on Park Hye-jin with more than 30 points, but the difficult game was played as Sonia Kim’s condition came. And in the end, Shin Ji-hyun allowed a reverse buzzer beater, and he was defeated by Hana One Q again. With only one game left in the regular league, Woori Bank is in a dizzying situation.
February 21, 2021 vs BNK: After all, regular league V13
The 30th regular league game. It was the last chance that Woori Bank had no back. If KB Stars defeated Samsung Life Insurance after losing this game, Woori Bank could have allowed a turnaround and stay in second place. As such, Woori Bank had to do its best. In the end, it was Captain Park Hye-jin who took the lead on the path to No. 1. Woori Bank, where Park Hye-jin’s score was exploded from the beginning of the game, made a score of 14-0. Within 40 minutes, BNK did not give a break, and the moment the buzzer rang, Woori Bank stood at the top of the regular league. It was the 13th No. 1 in the history of the club. After WKBL was transformed into a single league, it was twice until this day that it was ranked first in the final game of the regular league, all of which were No. 1 in Woori Bank. That’s why Woori Bank ended an exhilarating drama.
# Photo_ Provided by WKBL
Jumpball / Reporter Kim Yongho [email protected]
[저작권자ⓒ 점프볼. 무단전재-재배포 금지]