(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Oh Myeong-eon = Seoul Samsung, ‘last place for 10,000 years’ in professional basketball, showed off a completely different appearance by winning three consecutive games to open the new season.
Samsung defeated Goyang Sono 82-81 thanks to Kerem Kanter's dramatic final 3-pointer in the 2026-2027 KCC professional basketball regular league home game held at Jamsil Student Gymnasium in Seoul on the 11th.
It has been 23 years since the 2003-2004 season that Samsung achieved three consecutive wins in the opening game.
Samsung, which had been ranked last (10th) for 5 consecutive seasons from the 2021-2022 season to the 2025-2026 season, previously captured Suwon KT and Anyang CheongKwanJang, and on this day also showed off its tenacity and maintained its sole lead.
On the other hand, last season's runner-up team Sono fell into a three-game losing streak after winning the opening game, ending with 1 win and 3 losses.
Both teams showed off their firepower from the first quarter.
Sono hit the rim with seven shots from the outside in the first quarter alone, led by Kevin Kembao and Scotty James' three-pointers, but Samsung also took the lead at 27-25, with Kerem Kanter completing two and-one plays and Lee Gyu-tae and Han Ho-bin contributing evenly in scoring.
The tight flow continued in the second quarter, with Sono chasing after Samsung ran away.
As Samsung widened the gap with Lee Kyu-tae's clean outside shot and Chris McCullough's 3-point shot chased by the shot clock, Sono countered with 3-pointers from Lee Jae-do and Johnny O'Bryant.
Sono, which finished the first half trailing 41-43, turned the tide at the start of the third quarter.
They scored 7 points, including 5 from James, and quickly got back to 52-49.
Afterwards, while Samsung faltered due to a series of turnovers, James widened the lead by scoring a 3-pointer and an and-one at the end of the quarter.
Accordingly, Samsung entered the final fourth quarter trailing by 11 points, 57-68.
However, in the final fourth quarter, Samsung's persistent counterattack began.
In the middle of the quarter, Lee Gyu-tae and Lee Geun-hwi's consecutive 3-pointers split the rim, making it 72-73, and instantly heated up the atmosphere in the stadium.
Sono tried to run away by pouring cold water on James' outside gun, but Samsung tied the score at 76-76 with consecutive scores from Ho-bin Han and Gu-tang.
Afterwards, a nail-biting battle unfolded.
Sono took a step ahead with Kembao's 3-point shot, but O'Bryant, who was guarding the goal 2 minutes and 36 seconds before the end, was sent off for five fouls and was greatly shaken.
Samsung, which did not miss the opportunity, responded with Ho-bin Han's decisive 3-pointer with 1 minute and 18 seconds left, bringing the game back to square one at 79-79.
The direction of victory was determined at the last moment. 21.1 seconds before the end, Sono Lee Jae-do scored a layup with a brilliant breakthrough and seemed to have virtually won the game.
However, just before the end of the game, which seemed like a loss, Kanter made a dramatic comeback and hit the final 3-pointer into the rim, marking the end of the relentless struggle with Samsung's victory.
Kanter was a major contributor to the victory with 20 points and 11 rebounds.
Ho-bin Han recorded 15 points and 6 assists, and Gyu-tae Lee contributed to the victory with 16 points, including 4 3-point shots.
Meanwhile, at Anyang Jeongkwanjang Arena, Changwon LG, the 'championship candidate', suffered a blow by being defeated by Cheongkwanjang 65-88.
LG began a hot pursuit in the second quarter, led by Archie Goodwin, who hit four 3-point shots at the rim, but ended the first half trailing 39-51.
Even in the second half, the flow of the game hardly changed. Rather, Cheong Kwan-Jang tipped the scales of the game early, scoring 15 points in about 5 minutes, starting with Han Seung-hee's consecutive points in the middle of the third quarter.
To make matters worse, at the end of the third quarter, LG lost even Goodwin, completely losing momentum in their pursuit.
Goodwin made a motion that seemed to step on Byun Jun-hyung in a situation that had nothing to do with the play, and as a result of the video review, an unsportsmanlike foul was declared and he immediately left the court.
Entering the final fourth quarter with a wide lead of 72-50, 22 points, Cheong Kwan-Jang comfortably maintained the lead without any upsets and achieved a complete victory at home.
At Jeonggwanjang, Park Ji-hoon scored 18 points, Byun Jun-hyung played well with 12 points and 8 assists, and John Mooney recorded a double-double with 18 points and 12 rebounds.
In LG, Goodwin scored the most points in the team with 17 points, but his performance was overshadowed by an unnecessary foul and a dishonorable exit.
