*This content was translated by AI.
For the first time in the history of the Korean men's national basketball team, a foreign coach made a humiliating debut. South Korea's men's basketball team, led by head coach Nikolais Majuls (Latvia), bowed its head after suffering a record-breaking defeat by Taiwan.
South Korea was completely defeated by Taiwan 65-77 in the opening match of the second Asian qualifying round for the 2027 FIBA Basketball World Cup held at Shinjuang Gymnasium in Taiwan on the 26th (Korea time). As a result, Marjules received the worst report card of a 12-point loss in his first official game at the helm of the Korean national team.
No matter how much it is the first game since the coach took office, Marjules' debut is close to a catastrophe. This is because it completely collapsed after a lethargic game against Taiwan, which was considered the superiority in objective power.
This defeat is a historic humiliation of more than just one loss. It is the first time in about 17 years that South Korea lost to Taiwan in a major FIBA tournament since losing 65-70 at the FIBA Asia Cup in 2009. It is a record-breaking event in Korean basketball, including the previous record of 62-63 defeat at the 1995 Asian Cup, the third loss in history against Taiwan.
In particular, Taiwan was in the worst slump before this game. Taiwan is considered the weakest team in the qualifying round, having lost 13 of the 14 World Cup qualifiers before the qualifying period. In addition, in the last 11 games, he has been defeated in all of his games. He has lost more than 80 points in the last six consecutive games, and the balance of offense and defense has collapsed to the extent that he has never scored more than 73 points in the same period.
However, South Korea suffered a humiliating defeat against the weakest and became Taiwan's victim of losing back-to-back games.
In terms of the game, South Korea was completely overwhelmed by Taiwan. Korea's field-fighting success rate was only 31.5 percent. Taiwan had a relatively high success rate of 45.3 percent. Turnovers also self-destructed, committing 18 more than Taiwan (13).
A 39-45 deficit in the rebound fight was crucial. Taiwanese naturalized player Brandon Gilbek (213cm) scored 18 points and 16 rebounds to sway Korea under the basket.
South Korea struggled with 18 points and eight rebounds, including three 3-pointers, but lost the momentum of its pursuit as Lee Hyun-joong was sent off with about four minutes left in the fourth quarter.
With the entire team suffering from shoot difficulties, the low amount of time Yu Ki-sang played left a big question about coach Marjules' mercenary skills. Yoo Ki-sang, who played only about a minute in the first half, played a total of 14 minutes and 25 seconds in the second half alone, showing an efficient attack with 13 points. Veteran Lee Seung-hyun struggled alone with double-digit rebounds (10).
"I couldn't move the ball enough as I wanted," Marjules said at an official FIBA press conference after the game. "The balance between assistance and turnovers was not good. The shot attempt was also hasty. "I had difficulty controlling the opponent's counterattack," he said. Lee Hyun-joong also bowed his head, saying, "As the coach said, the game did not play as planned," adding, "The biggest problem was that five starters, including myself, tried to shoot quickly without playing team basketball."
Despite the defeat, South Korea remained in second place in Group B with a 2-1 record. The win and loss are the same as Japan, which is currently in first place, but they are behind in the difference between gains and losses.
The Marjules left the Taiwan match behind and now moves to Okinawa, Japan, where they will face Japan on March 1.
Both teams are desperate to win this Korea-Japan match. Japan also lost to China on the day Korea lost, and the ranking competition fell into the fog.
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*This content was translated by AI.
