Jeonju Wonho Suffers Defeat to 3rd Ranked Spain in World Ranking

Comeback loss from 69-73, Kang Isul scores 26 points, Park Jisoo fights with 10 rebounds

[Image source=Yonhap News]

South Korea's women's basketball team, ranked 19th in the world, was defeated by 3rd-ranked Spain.

Led by head coach Jeon Ju-won, the national team lost 69-73 to Spain in the first game of Group A in the women's basketball preliminary round at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, held on the 26th at the Saitama Super Arena in Japan. The teams were neck and neck through the third quarter, but early in the fourth quarter, a breakdown in offense and defense caused them to fall behind by more than 10 points. With 50 seconds remaining, Kang Yi-seul scored an additional free throw following a drive to the basket. On the next possession, Park Ji-hyun made a bold layup, closing the gap to 4 points. However, when they regained possession, only 9.5 seconds remained. Kang Yi-seul's three-point attempt also missed, narrowly missing out on their first win.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

South Korea has faced Spain six times so far and has never won. In the final qualifiers for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, they lost by 37 points (46-83). However, on this day, Kang Yi-seul performed well with 26 points and 7 rebounds, and Park Ji-su contributed 17 points and 10 rebounds, making it a competitive game. The national team will play their second group stage match against Canada on the 29th.