Oh, thank you! LG Defeats Jeong Kwan-jang to Retake Second Place Alone...Younger brother coach Cho Dong-hyun leads the first game thanks to KT's catch

Apr 03, 2025

'Brothers were brave.'

Changwon LG, the men's professional basketball team, took another breather in the competition for second place. LG won 77-62 at home against Anyang Jeong Kwan-jang in the '2024-2025 KCC Professional Basketball' held at Changwon Indoor Gymnasium on the 3rd.

LG, which recorded 33 wins and 19 losses, succeeded in retaking the second place alone. LG defeated KT, which was tied for second place, by a game thanks to Hyundai Mobis' 91-71 victory in the Ulsan Hyundai Mobis-Suwon KT match held at the same time.

The Changwon match, which was held on this day, was held solemnly in the atmosphere of remembrance. This is because it is a memorial period following the recent crash of the structure of Changwon NC Park in professional baseball. Considering that the accident occurred in the same hometown, the LG club participated in the memorial period set by the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) even though it was the last home game in the regular league and expressed its condolences. As a result, all loud cheering music and events, including cheerleading performances, were canceled, and the game was held while refraining from cheering the crowd as much as possible.

The atmosphere was solemn, but the heat of the match on the court was hot. Both matches held at the same time were the best 'Big Match' in recent years. Ulsan Hyundai Mobis and Suwon KT, which are fiercely competing for second place with the right to go straight to the semifinals, met in Ulsan, and LG had to play a burdensome match with Jeong Kwan-jang, who put his life and death into the last six.

Before the start of the game, Jeong Kwan-jang seemed to be at a disadvantage. Core power Byun Jun-hyung and Bae Byung-joon were missing. Byun Jun-hyung was diagnosed with a toe injury for two weeks against KT on the 31st of last month, and Bae Byung-joon decided to rest due to thigh pain. Yoo Ki-sang and Yang Joon-seok brought Lee Woo-jung because they thought it would be difficult to hold out as Park Ji-hoon and Kim Young-hyun against the opponent's lead, but the weight is low.

Contrary to expectations, Jeong Kwan-jang showed a reversal of performance in the first quarter. The two teams repeated low-scoring, ball-to-ball conversion for about seven minutes in the quarter with strong defense. In the meantime, there was a surprise card that caused a crack in LG, and it was Harvey Gomez in the Asian quarter of the articles of association. Gomez swept 14 points, including four 3-pointers, in the first quarter alone.

LG, which finished the first quarter trailing 18-26 as if possessed, was not the second-place competition team to suffer. LG began a strong retaliation at the start of the second quarter. In about three minutes, Jung In-deok, Doo Kyung-min, and Yoo Ki-sang shot a three-run relay, creating a 29-29 balance. Immediately, Gomez responded with an outside shot again, but a close game began in earnest, with LG 2-option mercenary Darryl Monroe hitting it with a shot under the basket.

Since then, the two teams have been anxious because of the one-option mercenary, as if they had made a promise. Jung Kwan-jang Johnny O'Brient was even given a technical foul for protesting the decision 3 minutes and 29 seconds before the end of the quarter after making a shot-movement foul by Asem Maray. It was a series of fouls that dedicated three free throws and the right to attack. O'Brient, who had been good at defending Maray from the beginning of the game, had no choice but to be replaced.

Maray doesn't disappoint either. Maray, who failed four free throws in the second quarter alone, including two failed free throws, showed a particularly low level of confidence in his offensive chances, although his rebound contribution, which is an advantage, was impeccable. This forced the two teams to finish the first half without taking each other's chances to run away.

In the third quarter, LG won the game little by little. With about three minutes left before the end of the quarter, it was a signal that made the first double-digit score difference (56-46) of the day with consecutive fastballs. On the other hand, Jeong Kwan-jang failed to restore the energy taken away due to the bad news that big man Han Seung-hee was sent off for five fouls. LG struggled somewhat with Jeong Kwan-jang's pursuit in the fourth quarter, but three minutes and 56 seconds before the end, Yang Joon-seok's three-point shot led to a 70-56 victory, virtually confirming the victory.

Meanwhile, Hyundai Mobis, which won on the day, narrowed the gap with KT again to half a game. "Thank you, brother." This is because LG's older brother Cho Sang-hyun defeated KT, which was tied for second place, by a game thanks to his younger brother Cho Dong-hyun, manager of Hyundai Mobis, to become the sole second place. Coach Cho Sang-hyun jokingly said before the game that `If Dong-hyun doesn't win today, I won't let you go.' It seems that telepathy between the twin brothers worked.

This article was translated by Naver AI translator.