The "NH Nonghyup Bank FIBA 3x3 Hongcheon Challenger 2024" was held on May 11 and 12 at a special court in the Tori Forest City Forest Park in Hongcheon-gun, Gangwon State. 16 3x3 teams from around the world participated in the fierce competition. 토토사이트 추천

Participants include the U.S. (Princeton), Latvia (Adaji), the Netherlands (Witherrecht), and Germany (Dusseldorf). It is the only 3x3 basketball international competition to be held in Korea this year. A total of four Korean teams participated in the competition: Seoul, Busan All-One Bank, Hamo Jinju, and Yesan Hanul.

Yesan Han-ul, the No. 1 KXO team, went straight to the main draw without going through two preliminary games. Compared to other Korean teams, the team was in a very favorable condition.

However, Yesan Hanul also lost 13-21 against Princeton, which is a strong contender for the title with members of the U.S. national team. Bang Seong-yoon scored nine points to display stellar performance, but it was not sufficient.

Yesan Hanul finished the tournament with a 12-21 loss to Latvia\'s Adaji in the second leg. Bang scored six points on three of his 10 outside shots.

Bang Sung-yoon said after the match, "The game was tough. I had problems managing my condition while waiting for a long time. I played considering that the opponent team was a very top-ranked player, but my physical strength was significantly different, so I played one-sidedly," in expressing regret.

What is the gap between Korea and the world? "There is a difference between professional and high school students," Bang said. "When basketball reaches its peak, there is a difference in basic skills and it is a physical struggle. Both European players are quite solid. They were rivals with good teamwork. Our team also wins in Korea, but it is a frog in a well. It is embarrassing to say that we are one of the best teams in Korea," he said, showing modesty.

Japanese teams Utsunomiya, Shinagawa, Sagamihara and Mongolian team Jabhang participated in the event. Utsunomiya (two wins) and Jabhang (one win and one loss) displayed outstanding performance to advance to the quarterfinals. Jabhang also includes Kang who played for Seoul Samsung.

Bang said, "Korean players have also improved a lot under physical conditions. They have improved their skills. However, players who play 3-to-3 have mostly just retired from clubs or professional leagues. Our gap with Asia on the world stage is huge."

It is a very valuable experience to invite world-class players to the home ground and hold a competition. In particular, the Korean team, which does not have many chances to play against foreign teams, can seek to improve its skills by taking the opportunity of the Hong Cheol Challenger.

In the end, none of the four Korean teams made it to the quarterfinals. The only time a Korean team beat a foreign team was when Seoul beat Davao City in the Philippines 21-18. Seoul lost to Dusseldorf of Germany 10-21 at the main draw, and failed to advance to the quarterfinals as it collapsed by Utsunomiya of Japan 3-22.

Bang Sung-yoon said, "This kind of international competition is really precious. When will we play with European or American players? Foul calls are also very different from those in Korea. They also have different styles of stepping in foreign countries and Korea. If a referee\'s call sounds weird, he or she uses a lot of travelling right away."

Bang Sung-yoon, a KBL legend, is still playing at an age well over the limit. "I always play happily without getting hurt. When I have a good opportunity, I want to play hard," he said, enjoying basketball itself.