Busan KCC pick up their game after early KBL season slump

Basketball

Published: 25 Dec. 2023, 14:23 Updated: 25 Dec. 2023, 17:12

Busan KCC pick up their game after early KBL season slump

Busan KCC Egis's Heo Ung, right, in action during a KBL game against the Changwon LG Sakers at Changwon Gymnasium in Changwon, South Gyeongsang on Sunday. [YONHAP]

Busan KCC Egis could soon get back their preseason glory after seeming to overcome an early season wobble, extending their winning streak to six games after Sunday’s victory against the Changwon LG Sakers.

Busan KCC struggle in KBL after preseason glory

Egis secured a 95-91 win after a fierce contest against last season’s league runners-up Sakers in Changwon, South Gyeongsang.

The Busan side edged out the Sakers from the first quarter, winning it 26-23, and claimed the second quarter 50-43. Egis denied the Sakers a comeback in the third quarter with the score at 74-68 and rode that momentum through the last quarter to seal the 95-91 victory.

Egis’s Ra Gun-ah’s performance was on display, scoring 31 points alone as the top scorer of the game. His teammate Heo Ung’s impact was also clear, as he managed 21 points.

Egis’s recent run is a stark contrast to their performance in the beginning of the 2023-24 season. The team claimed just three wins in their first nine league games.

The Busan side slipped down to eighth place on the 10-team table, but now they sit in fifth.

Ra’s form is one of the reasons behind Egis’s impressive run. The 34-year-old center did not shine in the first few games of the season, as he played fewer minutes and scored only 33 points in the team’s first five league games.

In past five league games, however, he scored nearly three times that — 91 points.

Ra's improved form, as well as Egis’s winning streak, tell a clear story that the team has bounced back from their early slump.

This current Egis looks a lot more like the preseason Egis, who won the KBL Cup for the very first time in October.

Their impressive performance during the preseason tournament led seven out of 10 KBL head coaches to pick the Busan side as a strong title contender for the 2023-24 season.

With the season not yet at its halfway mark, Egis can still display a stronger performance in the remainder of the campaign to claim the league title for the first time since 2021.

Egis have won the league title five times and championship eight times.

The team, formerly known as Jeonju KCC Egis, was renamed Busan KCC Egis this summer after moving from Jeonju, North Jeolla to Busan this summer.

As of press time Monday, Egis was due to play Daegu Kogas Pegasus in Daegu later in the afternoon.

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