Anyang KGC beat Seoul SK Knights to win KBL championship

Anyang KGC players celebrate after winning the 2022-23 KBL championship at Anyang Gymnasium in Anyang, Gyeonggi, on Sunday. [YONHAP]

Anyang KGC beat the Seoul SK Knights 100-97 in the fierce seventh leg of the championship series on Sunday, winning the 2022-23 KBL championship and becoming the overall champions for the first time in six years.

The competition between the two sides had been extremely fierce, forcing the series to the most intense seventh leg in KBL history, with the result still undecided until overtime.

Both sides went all out from the beginning to secure the coveted championship title at Anyang Gymnasium in Anyang, Gyeonggi, and the Knights grabbed the first quarter 26-24.

KGC bounced back and snatched the lead in the second quarter 53-48.

The Knights did not stay quiet in the third quarter, however, and took the score to 74-73, before they tied the score 91-91 in the fourth quarter, forcing overtime in the seventh leg for the first time ever.

The lead constantly changed hands, even in overtime, but KGC’s Oh Se-keun managed two consecutive points at 98-97 and marked the team’s victory at 100-97, taking revenge on the Knights that knocked them out in the fifth leg of the championship last season.

Oh, who managed 19.1 points on average during the championship series, was named the MVP of the postseason.

“I think I earned this award when some people call me a veteran, and others say I am done for,” Oh was quoted as saying by local media on Sunday. “This is invaluable.”

The win marked KGC’s fourth championship title since the 2016-17 season when they won both the league and championship.

The championship title also allowed KGC to end the season on a high note. The Anyang side were the most successful team in the KBL and even in international tournaments during the 2022-23 season.

KGC won their second regular league title with a wire-to-wire run and also lifted the trophy at the East Asia Super League Champions Week in March, where they became the inaugural champions after a victory over Taipei Fubon Braves of Taiwan and San Miguel Beermen of the Philippines and the Knights in the all-Korean final.

KGC head coach Kim Sang-sik, who took charge of the team ahead of the 2022-23 season, led the team to the three titles in just one season.

“There were some crises during the regular season, but I encouraged my players by talking with them,” Kim said. “I grabbed the title in the end, but I think head coach is really not an easy position to be in.”

BY PAIK JI-HWAN [paik.jihwan@joongang.co.kr]