Anyang Jung Kwan Jang Filipino import Rhenz Abando in an EASL Final Four match. –EASL PHOTO
LAPU-LAPU CITY—The cheers he heard from his countrymen the moment he entered the court on Friday night brought Rhenz Abando back to the time he appeared in the highest level of basketball he’s ever played in.
“I felt like I was playing in the [2023 Fiba] World Cup again,” Abando said even after he and Anyang Jung Kwan Jang lost to fellow South Korean club Seoul SK Knights, 94-79, in the East Asia Super League (EASL) Final Four at Hoops Dome here.
Abando saw action in his home country for the first time since September, when amid the dismal World Cup campaign of Gilas Pilipinas at Smart Araneta Coliseum, he was among the few bright spots with his athleticism and all-around effort.
READ: Latest PH homecoming bittersweet for Rhenz Abando
He played 20 minutes off the bench and came up with 11 points, three rebounds and a block, eliciting deafening roars from the crowd when he scored his first basket, a three-pointer in the second quarter.
But as much as Abando was feeling right at home, the result denied Anyang a chance to repeat its run in last year’s EASL Champions Week when it defeated Seoul for the title in Okinawa, Japan. This time, they will play for third place on Sunday.
“I’m happy but also disappointed because I was not healthy,” Abando said in Filipino. “But I feel more blessed to play here, even though we didn’t get the win.”
READ: Rhenz Abando, Anyang fall to Seoul SK in EASL Final Four
It was the second appearance for Abando since returning from a horrific fall in a December Korean Basketball League game which resulted in a spinal injury.
Anyang coach Sang Shik Kim gave no assurance about Abando’s availability for the consolation game.
“It was a tough situation for Rhenz and I knew that Rhenz wasn’t a hundred percent,” Kim said through an interpreter. “But I understand that Rhenz wants to play in front of his own crowd.
“But for the next game, we will try to communicate with Rhenz about the injury. But on top of our list is his health and we’re not gonna try to force him to play.”
The Knights, led by import Jameel Warney with 38 points, 16 rebounds and six assists, will face either the Chiba Jets of Japan’s B.League or the New Taipei Kings of Taiwan’s P+League in Sunday’s title game.
Chiba and New Taipei were playing at press time, with the latter playing minus former NBA player Jeremy Lin, who was scratched due to a nagging foot injury but was part of the Kings contingent for the Final Four.