The members of the Foothills U-16 Falcons girls basketball team knew they were in for a tough game while they were watching their opponents warm-up prior to tip-off on June 6.
The community team was virtually star struck when they played a high school team from the Gangwon region of South Korea.
“I was trying to concentrate on our warm-up, but I started watching theirs,” said Falcon Mariah Orr. “They were so organized. They were singing — they were singing so loud it was drowning out our music.”
Gangwon, which finished fourth among South Korean high schools last year, beat the Falcons 103-49 at Foothills Composite High School. The Gangwon team was in Okotoks as part of an international sports exchange between Alberta and South Korea.
Falcons Jessica Lynes said the final score was secondary.
“It was a great experience, it was just amazing to play a team from a different country,” Lynes said. “Their passes were amazing. They were the fastest team I ever played against. Even though the score was really bad, I thought we improved as the game went along. It was a real honour to play them.”
The Korean team has played together for a number of years, said Gangwon forward Hyejeong Jang.
Teamwork is the key to Korean basketball.
“One thing I have noticed in Canada is the players, all want to stand out on the court,” Jang said through a translator. “They play their hardest, but playing as a team is the most important thing to us.”
She acknowledged her club had the advantage over the Okotoks community team because they have played together for several years.
She said her team takes the nearly hour-long warm-up seriously.
“We are dead serious about what we do in warm-ups and we do exactly what we are told and what we are required to do,” she said.
She smiled when asked about the singing. It turns out they are encouraging one another.
The players were saying ‘peace, harmony and the name of the school.’
She said basketball is popular in Korea, and it is the goal of many high school girls to play in women’s professional leagues in the country.
Gangwon coach Yanghyun Cho said the popularity of basketball sky-rocketed in Korea after the nation hosted the Summer Olympics in 1984.
He said his team learned from their game against Foothills.
“It is not always about winning and losing, I am trying to teach my players to do their best and enjoy the game at the same time,” he said.
