Abando, Anyang complete comeback, drag Seoul to Game 7 in KBL finals

MANILA, Philippines – Rhenz Abando and the Anyang KGC lived to fight another day in the Korean Basketball League (KBL) as they completed a gutsy come-from-behind win against the Seoul SK Knights, 86-77, in Game 6 of their best-of-seven finals on Friday, May 5 at the Anyang Indoor Gymnasium.

Coming off a disappointing Game 5 performance, where he scored just 2 points on 2-of-12 shooting, Abando bounced back with 9 points on 4-of-6 clip from the field and 7 rebounds to help Seoul drag the defending champion Knights to a winner-take-all Game 7 on Sunday, May 7.

With their backs against the wall, Anyang banked on a well-balanced attack on offense, with Oh Se-keun leading the charge with 18 points, along with 5 rebounds and 5 assists. 

Darryl Monroe knocked down all his 6 attempts from the field to wind up with 16 points, while Byeon Jun-hyeong and Omari Spellman chipped in 15 and 13 points, respectively, for Anyang.

After a tight first half, where Anyang only trailed by 3, 43-46, Seoul came out with guns blazing from the halftime break and extended its slim three-point lead to as many as 15, 67-52, with two minutes to play in the third quarter. 

Still down by double-digits, 56-67, after a buzzer-beating layup by Abando at the end of the third period, Anyang, led by Monroe, Byeon, and Oh, turned things around in the final frame and went on a massive 22-2 surge to lead Seoul by 9, 78-69, with 2:58 left in the game.

Abando then put the finishing touches with a huge and-one play with 56.3 seconds to go as Anyang kept its championship hopes alive.

Jameel Warney was the only bright spot for the Knights in the losing effort, collecting a double-double of 31 points and 10 rebounds. – Rappler.com