“I’m sorry that I lost because of me.” Lee Seung-hyun (31, 197 cm) explains why he blamed himself after the first loss of the season.
Busan KCC turned the tide after its first loss of the season. KCC won 91-79 in the 2023-2024 regular season away game against the Ulsan Hyundai Mobis at Ulsan Dongcheon Gymnasium on Wednesday to move up to third place.
Head coach Jeon Chang-jin said the key points before the game were the performance of the backups and Lee Seung-hyun. “We need (Lee) Seung-hyun to play well. He’s in good shape, but I can see he’s struggling. I think it’s because he’s the type of player who comes alive psychologically when he scores.”
Jeon went on to share an anecdote from the game against Wonju DB on March 28, when the team failed to protect an 18-point lead and came from behind to lose. “Seung-hyun said, ‘I’m sorry you lost because of me. I told him not to worry about it….” Jeon said.
Seung-hyun was held to just four points, two rebounds, and two steals. He also shot just 25 percent (2-of-8) from the field. He blamed his poor shooting and physicality. When asked about this, Lee said, “It was a game where we made a lot of mistakes. Afterward, I thought, “Let’s focus on other things besides attacking. I went into the Hyundai Mobis match with the mindset of doing hard work.
Lee was held to four points against Hyundai Mobis, but his nine rebounds helped KCC turn the tide. The nine rebounds were his most of the season. At the end of the third quarter, he threw himself outside the baseline to save the ball, which led to an easy layup after a mismatch between Ra Gun-ah and Kim Ji-wan. Lee said, “(Ra) Gun-ah did a good job. We were able to win because everyone worked hard,” Lee laughed.
Lee played just 27 minutes and four seconds as KCC took an early lead, but prior to this game, Lee had been logging a lot of minutes. He averaged 35 minutes and 57 seconds in the two games, the second highest among Korean players after Lee Jung-hyun (Sono)’s 37 minutes and 6 seconds.
Lee said, “(Choi) Jun-yong and (Song) Gyo-chang can adjust naturally when they come back. The height of the team still looks low, but when they come back, the height will be solved. It’s true that there’s a lot of expectations, so there’s a lot of pressure, but the biggest responsibility is to be a mainstay. I’m determined to fulfill the fans’ expectations this season.” 캡틴토토 주소