“I cried? I’m not an easy person to cry”

WKBL forward Kim Dan-bi of Asan Woori Bank led the team to its second win in the best-of-five championship series with a 21-point performance. The forward admitted after the game that she was “still a little giddy” but was determined to win Game 4.

Woori Bank, led by Lee Sati-woo, defeated Cheongju KB 62-57 in the third game of the Woori Bank WON 2023-24 Women’s Professional Basketball Championship at Asan Yi Sunshin Gymnasium at 7 p.m. on Nov. 28.

For Woori, it was a game from heaven and hell. Woori couldn’t penetrate KB’s zone defense in the early going and took a lot of low-percentage mid-range shots. Even ace players Kim Dan-bi and Park Ji-hyun looked a bit tired on offense. “I was wondering if we should play the fourth game,” said coach Lee Sat-woo after the game. In fact, Woori Bank repeatedly failed to score offense in the first six minutes of the second quarter, except for Kim Dan-bi’s two points.

However, late in the quarter, Lee Myeong-kwan and Park Hye-jin made late offensive runs to set the stage for a comeback. Kim Dan-bi also contributed with a mid-range shot.

This set the stage for a huge comeback. After overcoming the challenges of turnovers and miscues early in the third quarter, Woori Bank showed incredible momentum. Kim Dan-bi led the way. He led Woori’s offense with a series of mid-range shots and free throws. His defense was also impressive, as he and Park Ji-hyun thoroughly marked Park Ji-soo. Park was unable to get inside properly or was forced to receive the ball from the top. Even when she did manage to get inside, she was frustrated by hard calls. Even KB’s three-point shooting stopped working in the third quarter, completely taking away from the flow.

It was Park Hye-jin who took over the baton from Kim Dan-bi. She took a pass from Kim Dan-bi at the end of the third quarter and hit a long-range three-pointer to turn the game around. The Asin Yi Sunshin Gymnasium erupted in cheers. The two players jumped up and down to celebrate the score.

Woori Bank continued to shine in the fourth quarter, with Kim Dan-bi and Choi Yi-sam hitting crucial three-pointers to seal the victory.

Woori wins the best-of-seven series 2-1. In the history of the best-of-five WKBL Championship series, the team that wins Game 3 has a 90.9 percent chance of winning the title. Woori Bank capitalized on those odds. Kim finished with 21 points, six assists, and three steals.

Speaking to the media after the match, Kim breathed a sigh of relief: “The championship is definitely tough, it’s unbelievable. It was like that when we won the first game, and it’s the same today. I’m a little nervous.” He also gave credit to his teammates, saying, “We won because they stepped up and encouraged us even when we were struggling.”

When the interviewer said, “Some players showed tears after the game,” Kim Dan-bi asked, “Did I cry?” and replied, “I think I was sleepy and yawned or something. I’m not a person who cries easily,” she admitted. Park Hye-jin, who was sitting next to her, said, “I’m usually a tearful person.”

When asked about the joint score with Park Hye-jin in the third quarter, Kim Dan-bi said, “I’ve been playing with Park Hye-jin for two seasons, but we actually played basketball in the same era. The moment I broke through, I could see how Park Hye-jin would move. I realized that this is the ‘basketball flow’. The play came out because we had faith in each other,” she reflected.

Kim attacked KB with mid-range scoring from any position on the day, and it was a mid-range shot from the 90-degree area that put the game out of reach at the end of the fourth quarter. Kim Dan-bi said, “I don’t really care about the position. But coach Satellite Woo kept yelling at me to catch the ball, so I was in that position without realizing it. I thought, ‘If I don’t 안전놀이터 catch it, I’ll be in trouble,'” he said, adding with a laugh, “There’s (Park) Ji-soo under the goal, and I didn’t have time to shoot it.”

“From the first quarter, (Park) Ji-soo and I were not balanced because we used a lot of energy in the last game, so we focused on defense with the mindset of ‘Ji-soo, let’s die together. ‘ But the coach said, ‘Why are some players not doing it and others are doing it? ‘ He told us that even if we put our energy into defense, we still have to attack, and we woke up.”

Woori Bank won its second consecutive championship and is one step away from its 12th overall title. “During the regular season, I felt a little guilty because I had a feeling of ‘if we win, it’s good, but if we lose, it’s inevitable,'” Kim said. “The coach said, ‘No matter how much KB is No. 1, we have to play to win,’ so we played to win,” she said confidently.

When the interviewer said, “Coach Satellite said that the fourth game was a one-game match,” Kim Dan-bi replied, “Of course, the fifth game could be unfavorable for us. But I will play the fourth game with the same heart as the first game. We played with no pressure that day, and the same will be true for the next game.”

Finally, when the press asked if she saw the coach’s ceremony to raise the players’ spirits, Kim Dan-bi said, “I don’t have time to watch the coach. He’s probably tap dancing in his shoes, so he should be worried about his feet,” she joked.

Woori Bank will play the fourth game against KB at the same venue on the 30th.

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