The “fireballer” was on fire, but it was veteran shooter Heo Il-young (38, 196 cm) who had the last laugh.
Heo started and finished with 17 points and four rebounds in 33 minutes and 31 seconds of action in SK’s 2023-2024 regular season opener against Goyang Sono at Goyang Sono Arena on Thursday. SK won 90-79, extending its opening three-game winning streak and moving back into sole possession of first place.
Jeon’s fingertips were fierce. Despite SK’s switch defense, Jeon finished with 27 points, including six 3-pointers. He also made all five of his free throws. The SK coaching staff was also tongue-in-cheek, saying, “We tried to stop him, but he did his part in the end.”
But in the end, it was Heo Il-young, not Jeon Sung-hyun, who was the winner. Heo made three of four long-range three-pointers and scored the most points of any Korean player on the team. In the decisive fourth quarter, she made all three of her free throws, including two 3-pointers.
Heo said, “Unlike last season (when we won one game in the opening five), it feels good to get off to a good start. (Oh) Se-geun-i has a big impact on the team even though he only scores a few points. Jamil Warney and I have been able to create a lot of chances and score a lot of goals.”
The actual wedge goal came from a combination of Oh and Heo. With just over three minutes left in the game and down by three points, Oh took advantage of a defensive stop and passed to Heo, who was open at the top of the key. Heo converted it into a clean three-pointer to end SONOE’s comeback bid.짱구카지노 주소
“I talk to Se-geun a lot,” Heo said. He told me to watch my shooting chances because he would save his shots. So I was getting ready to shoot. It’s similar to when (Moon) Tae-jong played with his brother at Orion.”
Heo is now the most experienced player alongside Ham Ji-hoon and Yang Woo-seop, but he’s still a mainstay. In three games, he averaged 28 minutes and nine seconds with 12 points, two 3-pointers (54.5% success rate), 4.3 rebounds and one assist. That’s the second-highest minutes total on the team behind Warney (32:53). At her current pace, she is on pace to reach 800 career 3-pointers this season, a milestone that has been reached by only 15 players.
“I’m just happy to be on the court regardless of my condition,” Heo said. To add to that, I’ll do my best until (Ahn) comes back. I don’t know if we will share playing time or play together after he comes back, but I will do my best every game.”