Cheongju KB Stars won the first game of the playoffs to start their quest for the championship.
The regular-season champion KB Stars easily defeated the fourth-ranked Bucheon Hana OneQ 69-51 in the first round of the Woori Bank Woori WON 2023-2024 Women’s Professional Basketball League quarterfinals (best-of-five, best-of-three) playoffs at their home court, 스포츠토토 Cheongju Gymnasium, on Monday.
Park Ji-soo continued her regular-season form with 17 points and 15 rebounds, while Heo Ye-eun energized the KB offense with 15 points, including three 3-pointers.
In the history of the Women’s Professional Basketball League, the winner of the first round of the playoffs has an 85.7 percent chance of advancing to the championship game. KB has advanced to the championship game six times after winning the first game of the playoffs eight times.
KB dominated Hana OneQ in the regular season, winning all six games, but struggled from long range. KB shot 22 three-pointers in the first half and didn’t make a single one.
Hana OneQ evenly matched KB 23-24 in the first half, with veteran Kim Jong-un (15 points) scoring seven points, Yang In-young (9 points) scoring five points, and Shin Ji-hyun (9 points) scoring four points.
KB started to take control of the game in the third quarter with three-pointers from Kim Ye-jin and Heo Ye-eun. With just over a minute left in the quarter, Kang Isul and Kim Ye-jin hit another three-pointer to extend KB’s lead to 14 points, 49-35.
Hana OneQ showed some determination, cutting the deficit to 10 points, 46-56, with 6:31 left in the fourth quarter on a three-pointer by Kim Jeong-jin.
However, Park answered with a basket and another free throw on the ensuing possession, and KB never got closer than 10 points the rest of the way.
With the score at 63-49 with just over two minutes left, KB brought Park Ji-soo and Kang Isul to the bench to prepare for Game 2.
Game 2 of the playoffs will be held on Nov. 11 at Cheongju Gymnasium.