By Kim Tong-hyung
Staff Reportedr
Victor Thomas scored 33 points to key in the Samsung Thunder's 96-80 win in the opener of their best of five-semifinal series in Jeonju Sunday.
On the other side of the postseason bracket, Dongbu Promy has a 1-0 series lead over the KT&G Kites after a 73-62 win at home in Wonju Saturday.
Thomas led five Thunders players who scored in double digits, with veteran point guard Lee Sang-min contributing 17 points and forward Lee Kyu-sup adding 14. Americans Jason Robinson, who scored 29 points, and Brandon Crump, who had 24, were the only players who scored more than 10 for the Egis, which finished second in the regular season and earned a first-round bye in the playoffs.
``The first game is always important and we are glad to have the win in the bag. Some players like Lee Kyu-sup and Kang Hyuk are not in top condition right now but everybody is willing to contribute," said Sang-min.
When Dongbu Promy center Kim Joo-sung was named the Korean Basketball League (KBL)'s Most Valuable Player (MVP) last month, some questioned whether veteran KT&G Kites guard Joo Hee-jung was more deserving of the honor.
For at least a day, Kim managed to silence the debate in convincing fashion.
The 29-year-old big man dominated both ends of the court with 26 points, seven rebounds and four blocked shots as the Promy cruised to a win against the Kites.
Joo, who led the league averaging 7.3 assists per game in the regular season, played for more than 31 minutes but had only two points and one assist to show for it, picking a bad time to submit one of his worst games as a pro.
``Missing the playoffs last season really hurt my pride as a player, and I have been hungry for redemption ever since," said Kim, who has a chance to pull off a rare triple crown of MVP awards, with the all-star game and regular season hardware already in the bag and the finals honor left to pursue.
``I attacked aggressively in the second and third quarters and that's when we pulled away. Our players were in fresh condition after the first-round bye, and we knew we had a good chance to win if we avoid playing into their style of play.''
Carlos Dixon contributed with 13 points, and Reggie Okosa added eight points and 14 rebounds for the Promy. Americans Marquin Chandler, who led all players with 28 points, and T.J. Cummings, who added 12, were the only Kites players to score in double digits.
The Promy, who were awarded a first-round bye in the playoffs after finishing first in the regular season, will face the fourth-place Kites in Game 2 on Monday.
The Promy, who led 18-15 after the first quarter, expanded their lead in the second and third quarters, benefiting from the league rules that allow teams to use only one of their two foreign players at a time in the middle periods.
With the undersized Kites struggling to match up against the 2.05-meter Kim and either Okosa or Dixon in the paint, veteran forward Yang Kyung-min was left knocking down open jumpers, scoring nine of his 11 points in the second quarter, as the Promy finished the first half with a 36-23 lead.
The Kites responded with renewed urgency and stingy defense in the third quarter, but Kim kept the Promy out of striking distance, scoring 10 of the team's 16 points in the period.
A Chandler-inspired rally allowed the Kites to cut the deficit to 69-60 with a minute and 50 seconds to play, but Dixon buried a 3-pointer on the next possession to kill any hopes of a comeback by the visitors.