{
  "id": 8180530,
  "title": "Veteran basketball forward says team overcame challenges in opening victory",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/18/veteran-basketball-forward-says-team-overcame-challenges-in-opening",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-18T05:42:04.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Korea Times",
    "slug": "the-korea-times",
    "url": "https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/sports/20260918/veteran-basketball-forward-says-team-overcame-challenges-in-opening-victory"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "NAGOYA, Japan — Veteran basketball player Choi I-saem led her team to a dominant 106-40 opening victory against Malaysia at the Asian Games Women's Basketball tournament on Friday. The Korean team, aged 32, faced challenges such as jet lag and unfamiliarity with the court during the first few minutes of the game. Despite missing their first nine field goal attempts and sinking only 1-of-14 shots, Choi and her teammates refused to make excuses. Choi's three-pointer with 3:58 left in the opening quarter gave Korea a 9-8 lead, and they never trailed after that. Choi credited the team's ability to overcome the early struggles to their collective efforts to tighten up defensively after the first half. Choi, who scored 19 points, seven rebounds, and two steals, attributed the initial shooting difficulties to the players' unfamiliarity with the court.",
  "summary": "NAGOYA, Japan — From playing through jet lag to taking shots at an unfamiliar court, Korea dealt with challenges as it began the women's basketball tournament at the Asian Games against Malaysia on Friday. Veteran forward Choi I-saem, the team's oldest player at 32, said she and her teammates refused to make excuses and tackled those issues head-on, which is why they were able to come away with a…",
  "key_points": [
    "Veteran Choi I-saem leads Korea to 106-40 win over Malaysia",
    "Team overcomes jet lag and court unfamiliarity early on",
    "Choi scores 19 points, 7 rebounds, 2 steals in dominant performance"
  ],
  "editors_take": "The Korean team's ability to overcome early struggles and dominate the game shows their resilience and capacity to adjust to challenging circumstances, led by veteran player Choi I-saem's strong performance.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "The Korea Times",
        "title": "Veteran basketball forward says team overcame challenges in opening victory",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/18/veteran-basketball-forward-says-team-overcame-challenges-in-opening-8182666",
        "published": "2026-09-18T05:52:04.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}