Son leads with 26 points from O'Brien, crushing Korea Gas Corporation despite Ra Gun-ah's valiant effort! Smiles in home opener [Goyang on-site review]

*This content was translated by AI.

Goyang Sono Skygunners celebrated in their season opener against Daegu Korea Gas Corporation Pegasus.

On the 3rd, Goyang Sono secured a decisive 82-73 victory over Daegu Korea Gas Corporation in the 2026-2027 KCC Pro Basketball League at Goyang Sono Arena. After a back-and-forth contest, they seized control in the fourth quarter.

With this win, Sono took their first game played at home, starting the season on a fresh note. On the other hand, Korea Gas Corporation lost the close match.

Early in the first quarter, when Korea Gas Corporation took an 11-7 lead with perimeter shots from Alluma and Choi Seung-wook, Sono responded with a three-pointer from Lim Dong-seop and consecutive scores from James and Kim Jin-yu to take a 16-11 lead. In the latter half of the quarter, Korea Gas Corporation retook the lead 22-21 with inside attacks by substitute Ra Gun-ah and a three-pointer from Jeon Hyun-woo, but O'Brien of Sono made free throws to end the first quarter tied at 22-22.

Sono took the initiative in the second quarter. Following Kemba's three-pointer, O'Brien's aggressive play inside and out widened the gap to 32-24. Korea Gas Corporation also closed in to within a point at 43-45 with Alluma's dunk and perimeter shots from Ra Gun-ah and Jeong Seong-woo, but Sono maintained their lead, finishing the first half up 47-43 on O'Brien's inside shot with three seconds remaining. In the first half alone, O'Brien of Sono poured in 18 points, while Alluma and Ra Gun-ah combined for 29 points for Korea Gas Corporation.

Korea Gas Corporation launched a fierce counterattack early in the third quarter. After closing the gap with free throws from Ra Gun-ah and Kim Jun-il, Korea Gas Corporation flipped the score to 58-55 with inside and outside scoring from Park Jun-young and additional free throws from Ra Gun-ah.

However, Sono weathered the crisis with perimeter shots. After Lee Jae-do's tying three-pointer with 2 minutes and 23 seconds remaining leveled the game at 58-58, they quickly pulled away to 64-58 with James' three-point play and Kim Jin-yu's three-pointer. Although Korea Gas Corporation recovered two points just before the end of the quarter, Sono finished the third quarter maintaining a 64-60 lead.

Early in the fourth quarter, it seemed Sono would secure the win again with perimeter shots. Demonstrating defensive focus, including a block by Kemba, Sono built a 70-62 lead with three-pointers from O'Brien and Lee Jae-do. Then, following a steal by Jeong Hee-jae, O'Brien's three-pointer hit again, extending the lead to 11 points at 73-62.

However, Korea Gas Corporation's resilience was no joke. Following Park Jun-young's three-pointer, Ra Gun-ah converted a steal by Belangel into a decisive fast-break dunk, closing the gap to six points at 67-73 with about five minutes remaining and throwing the game into uncertainty.

The six-point balance was broken by a successful Sono attack with just over two minutes left in the game. They seized control with consecutive scores from Kemba and James and closed out the game. O'Brien led Sono's offense, scoring a whopping 26 points on his own. In addition, Kemba contributed 16 points and James added 13. Ra Gun-ah of Korea Gas Corporation fought hard with a double-double of 21 points and 12 rebounds, but unfortunately bowed in defeat.

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*This content was translated by AI.