Seoul SK Knights lose 72-69 to Japan's Chiba Jets in EASL final

It was the Knights' second consecutive year finishing the tournament as runners-up.

Jameel Warney of the Seoul SK Knights, left, vies against Xavier Cooks of Chiba Jets during the East Asia Super League final at Lapu-lapu Hoops Dome in the Philippines on Sunday. [XINHUA/YONHAP]

The Seoul SK Knights lost 72-69 to Chiba Jets from Japan in the 2023-24 East Asia Super League (EASL) final on Sunday, finishing the tournament as runners-up for a second straight time.

The Knights struggled at the beginning of the game at Lapu-lapu Hoops Dome in the Philippines, ending the first quarter down 21-16.

The Knights briefly snatched the lead during the second quarter but headed into halftime three points behind with the board at 37-34.

They bounced back in the third quarter to reclaim the lead, heading into the fourth up 54-51, but failed to complete the comeback, ending the game 72-69.

The loss marked the second consecutive time the Knights managed a runner-up finish at the EASL, having lost last year's final to fellow KBL team Anyang KGC, now called Anyang Jung Kwan Jang Red Boosters.

The Red Boosters, who also competed at the EASL this year, finished in third place with a 78-76 win over New Taipei Kings from Taiwan in the third-place game that also took place on Sunday.

This year was the first time that teams competed with an ordinary round-robin system where eight teams, divided into Groups A and B, played games in a home-and-away format.

Last season’s group stage games ran in an unusual round-robin format, where each team in either group played just two games.

The Red Boosters joined the last four as Group A runners-up while the Knights reached the semifinal as Group B winners.

The two sides clashed in the semifinal on Friday, with the Knights grabbing a 94-79 victory.

The KBL teams will be back in league action.

The Knights will play Daegu Kogas Pegasus on Wednesday in southern Seoul while the Red Boosters face the Goyang Sono Skygunners in Anyang, Gyeonggi at the same time.

BY PAIK JI-HWAN [paik.jihwan@joongang.co.kr]