Women's basketball coach says team in good shape despite missing stars

NAGOYA, Japan — Korea head coach Park Soo-ho said Friday his women's national basketball team will be just fine at the Asian Games in Japan despite missing two of its biggest stars. Park made the claim after Korea routed Malaysia 106-40 to begin Group C play at Aichi International Arena in Nagoya. Park brought a team of 11 players, one shy of the maximum, with star center Park Ji-su ruled out with an ankle injury. The national team had been holding out hope that the former Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) player would recover in time, but when that did not happen, the Korea Basketball Association chose not to name her replacement. Park Ji-hyun, a current WNBA player, also did not join the national team due to her commitment with the Los Angeles Sparks. Coach Park insisted the rest of the team will be in good shape without those stars because they have already played enough games and had enough practices in their absences. "Of course, they could have really helped us here," said the coach. "But during our preparations for the Asian Games, we made sure we would not be too re