Park Ji-soo (25), who set the record for 400 blocks, says she will challenge for 500.
The Cheongju KB Bank Stars won 84-63 against the Incheon Shinhan Bank Esbuds in the Woori Bank Woori WON 2023-24 Women’s Professional Basketball League on Friday at Incheon Dowon Gymnasium. KB, which won its ninth straight game, improved to 11-1. Shinhan Bank, which lost its fourth straight game, remained in last place with a 1-11 record.
Park Ji-soo led the way with a triple-double of 31 points, 16 rebounds, and five assists. With one blocked shot, Park became the youngest (25 years, 0 months) and least played (190 games) player in history to reach 400 career blocked shots. This is the fourth-best mark in WKBL history. The previous record was held by Lee Jong-ae (retired) at 29 years, 10 months and 197 games.
At the postgame press conference, Park was unaware of the record she had set. “I only had one block today. I heard for a while that I had set a record, but I didn’t know it was 400 blocks,” she said. “It feels good because a record is something that leaves a footprint. It doesn’t go away and it means something. Especially the smallest game and the youngest are even more meaningful. I will try to reach 500 blocks in the future.”
Playing for the second time in two days, Park was clearly exhausted. He said, “I really struggled today. I was tired from the morning practice, so I thought I would be fine, but everyone looked tired in the match. I missed a lot of shots on defense in the beginning, but it wasn’t a lack of concentration, but my legs couldn’t go forward because I was tired.” He confessed. “We got off to a bad start by giving a team with a bad 3-point lead, but as I warmed up, my performance came out and I’m glad we won,” she said.
The KB Stars were missing Kim Min-jung and Kim Ye-jin, and their captain Yoon Ah Yeom had the flu. Without their three main players, Park Ji-soo’s role is even more important. When asked if she had any special fitness regimen, she replied, “I’m trying to eat well for my body. In fact, if I’m too tired, I don’t eat much.”
She praised the younger players for filling in for the main players. Park said, “When the main players are out, it can bring down the mood more than anything else. So I try to inspire confidence in the younger players. I tell them to do whatever they want to do because their older sisters will support them. Today, the younger players did their part and it was a great victory. After the victory, I felt that this is a strong team, and I am grateful.”
Park Ji-soo added, “I always think I need to do better than I am and I want to show a dominant performance. There is no player in the league who is as physical as me. I would be very disappointed in myself if I didn’t play well when there are no players with better physicality than me. I want to build a team that is unstoppable, and I want to be perfect.”