TG Still on Top of the League

TG Sambo withheld KTF`s pursuit to stay on top of the standings.

In the 2004~2005 Anycall pro basketball regular season match up, TG edged the runner-up KTF 74-66 in Geumjung gymnasium, Busan on January 2.

TG is on top of the league with a 19-9 record. KTF tallied 17 wins and 11 losses to take a tie for second place with the Orions, who beat Mobis on the same day.

TG dominated with the help of foreign player Watkins (18 points) and Kim Joo-sung (12 points), and also led from the opening of the game thanks to the outside shooting of Shin Gi-sung and Yang Kyung-min, and opened the gap by as much as 19 points in the third quarter with 45-26 showing on the scoreboard.

But TG allowed three three-pointers from KTF`s Aron Mcgee (23 points) in the fourth quarter and let KTF draw as close as 67-66 two minutes before the buzzer.

TG slipped away from the crisis as Watkins put in a bucket underneath the basket to pull ahead 69-66, and seized the winning momentum as TG`s Chudney Gray stole KTF`s Geib Minake`s low post shot attempt. Perplexed, KTF held back Gray`s fast break via a foul and Gray added a free-throw shot to lead TG to a 70-66 lead and escape from the pursuit.

LG defeated SBS 90-86 in Changwon and deviated from the team`s longest losing streak of 11 since the launch of the team. It was the team’s first victory after defeating Electric Land last December 4, a span of 29 days. LG`s Desmond Penniga, who was on the brink of getting driven off the team due to excessive personal play, contributed 29 points and finally did his part. LG allowed the gap to close by as much as five points in the fourth quarter after closing the third down 72-62, but with the offensive plays of Penniga and Gerald Hunnicut (23 points), the team concluded the game with a victory after taking a 10-point lead.

In SK`s home match against Samsung, foreign player Freeman missed two consecutive matches due to amnesia (loss of memory), but Jun Hee-chul`s (28 points) low-post plays and Jo Sang-hyun`s (24 points, seven three-pointers) outside jumpers gave SK its third win in a row with a 97-89 win.

Won-Hong Lee Jong-Seok Kim bluesky@donga.com kjs0123@donga.com