“We rotated our lineup to make sure we were healthy, and I think it worked out well,” said Busan BNK head coach Park Jung-jeong after the team’s convincing win over home team Chinese Taipei.
BNK made it two wins in a row with a 77-65 victory over Chinese Taipei B, a team comprised of senior national team players, in the second round of the 42nd William Jones Cup at Heping Gymnasium in Taipei, Taiwan, on Saturday.
“The players are feeling a lot of fatigue after playing every day for five days,” said BNK head coach Park Jeong-jung in a postgame interview, “but we’ve been rotating the players to keep them fresh.”
“The Taiwanese B team had a lot of energy, so it was a tough game early on,” Park said, noting that the team struggled to find an offense against their opponent. “I think it was because we had players who didn’t have much experience playing in high-pressure games.”
“We hadn’t played against them before, and I think it took us a while to figure out our opponent because we were in a hurry and thinking on our feet,” he said, adding, “Afterward, we talked to each other and worked it out.”
Park also talked about the pressure of a “tough schedule” that will see the team face Japan’s Chanson Cosmetics on July 7, the Philippine National Team on July 8, and the Taiwan A Team on July 9.
“The remaining three games are the high point of the tournament,” Park said, “It’s tough to play tough teams for three games in a row, but I can see the players finding their rhythm well. We are determined to show them a good game.”
“I think we didn’t play as well as we had prepared in the beginning of the game because the players were physically tired,” said Han, who scored 13 points on 50 percent field goal shooting. “After the first half, the coach told us to do the basics first, so we all got our heads together,” he laughed.
“My knee is not in a good condition, but I’m paying a lot of attention to it,” he said. “After the national team players left during the off-season, we did a lot of sums among the remaining players, and I tried to quickly understand what the coach was asking.”
“When I leave home, I’m reminded of the phrase ‘high school student,'” he laughed, before admitting that it was difficult to eat Korean food.
However, he added, “I haven’t been able to go abroad for the past few years due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), so it’s nice to feel like I’m traveling to Taiwan this time.”
As for Park’s banner of ‘strengthening the bench,’ he said, “It’s inspiring. When we come into the game late, we try to change the atmosphere.” 메이저놀이터
“The Taiwan B team is very good one-on-one,” said Jinan, who finished with a double-double of 19 points and 11 rebounds, “and I think the environment for my Taiwanese friends to play basketball is also better.”
Jinan was ejected from the first game against the Iranian national team midway through the third quarter after committing five fouls, but on this day he played a perfect game to lead BNK to victory.
“The coach’s eyes were wide open because I hadn’t been able to concentrate the day before,” he laughed, before revealing the secret behind his performance, “I wanted to be more focused.”