(LEAD) (Asiad) S. Korea reaches men's basketball final

NAGOYA, Japan, Sept. 18 - Lee Hyun-jung, the 25-year-old forward for South Korea's basketball team, was focused on keeping his cool after leading his team to the men's basketball final at the Asian Games on Friday. With 26 points on 8-of-16 shooting, Lee propelled South Korea to a 77-51 victory over Iran in the semifinals at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games in Nagoya. Despite early struggles, Lee remained composed, shooting seven three-pointers in 13 attempts.

Lee emphasized that he was content with contributing however he could, whether that meant scoring or setting up teammates. He expressed no concern about the team's 6-game losing streak against Iran, stating that his teammates had done the majority of the work to make his task easier. Lee praised the team's strong defense, rebounding, and transition offense, which they would likely leverage against the winner of the China-Japan semifinal in the upcoming final.

Lee encouraged his team to maintain composure and avoid overconfidence, stressing that they must play with discipline to secure the gold medal they haven't won since 2014.