South Korea Earns First Winning Streak Under Marzullo Ahead of Asian Games

Lee Jung-hyun hit seven three-pointers and scored 27 points as South Korea defeated the Philippines 81-55 in a warm-up game ahead of the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games.

The victory at Suwon KT Sonicboom Arena on Sept. 4 gave Nikolaos Marzulis his first consecutive wins as coach of the South Korean men’s national team. South Korea had beaten Saudi Arabia in the second round of the 2027 FIBA Basketball World Cup Asian qualifiers on Aug. 31.

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Overall, we showed a lot of fighting spirit. We applied good pressure on defense and played a good game.

Lee Hyun-jung scored six points, but made his mark in the less glamorous parts of the game. He collected 15 rebounds, including nine in the first quarter, and helped South Korea control the contest.

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We had too many turnovers and missed too many shots. We will address those issues through training.

The result came with a qualification. The Philippines, ranked 39th by FIBA compared with South Korea’s 57th, left out many of its key players, including naturalized players. South Korea fielded its strongest lineup, yet still showed weaknesses, including turnovers and a scoreless five-minute stretch at the start of the third quarter.

Marzulis praised the team’s energy and defensive pressure, but said it had committed too many turnovers and missed too many shots. He said those problems would be addressed in training. Of Lee Jung-hyun, the coach said, “A point guard on our team has to do many things, including passing, shooting and running the game, and Lee Jung-hyun did all of them well.”

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A point guard on our team has to do many things, including passing, shooting and running the game, and Lee Jung-hyun did all of them well.