Busan BNK came from behind to defeat Incheon Shinhan Bank and earn its first win of the season, led by double-double duo Jin An (25 points, 12 rebounds) and Ahn Hye-ji (12 points, 14 assists).
BNK won 76-71 on the road against 토토 Shinhan Bank in the Woori Bank Woori WON 2023-2024 Women’s Professional Basketball League at Dowon Gymnasium in Incheon on Tuesday. The hosts pulled within 67-65 on a three-pointer by Lee Da-yeon with 4:49 left in the fourth quarter, but lost momentum when ace Kim Sonia fouled out with five fouls with 1:45 left in the game after a rebound. Shinhan Bank lost both games of its home opener.
On this occasion, BNK took the lead early in the game thanks to Jinan’s dominance under the basket and the outside shooting of Lee So-hee and Ahn Hye-ji. They led 24-15 after one quarter. Shinhan Bank tried to catch up in the second quarter. Kim Tae-yeon and Lee Kyung-eun led the offense to reduce the gap. Trailing 25-33 with 2:35 left in the second quarter, Lee Kyung-eun’s basket, two consecutive paint-zone baskets by Kim Tae-yeon, and a two-pointer by Kim Jin-young made it 33-35 with 50 seconds left. Kim Han-byul hit a two-pointer on the final possession to end the half with BNK ahead by four points.
In the third quarter, Shinhan Bank took the lead for the first time thanks to Kim Tae-yeon’s inside game. With 6:28 left, Kim scored her eighth point of the game to make it 44-44, followed by a three-pointer from Kim Sonia to make it 47-44 with five minutes left. BNK tied the game with a three-pointer from Lee So-hee, but Kim Sonia scored back-to-back baskets to regain the lead, and they went into the fourth quarter trailing 53-56.
BNK was shaken up in the third quarter. They gave up eight points to Kim Tae-yeon alone from the floor, and were forced to settle for an outside shot from Kim Sonia to cut the deficit to 44-47. Soon after, Lee So-hee nailed a three-pointer from the right side of the arc to put out the flames, but was answered by Kim Sonia each time. Jin An responded, but Lee’s three-pointer ended the third quarter with the score at 53-56.
In the fourth quarter, the tables were turned, as BNK started with a three-pointer from Lee So-hee, followed by six straight points in the paint zone from Jinan and a three-pointer from Kim to pull back to 65-64 with 5:15 left. A seesaw game ensued. But at 67-67, Kim Han-byul’s layup and Lee So-hee’s three-pointer sparked a 72-67 run. Then, taking advantage of Kim Sonia’s absence, Kim Han-byul’s two-point play in the paint and Lee So-hee’s two free throws with nine seconds left sealed the victory.