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UVA KSA Tournament March 30, 2003 The origins of the dominant squad that would run rampant through the UVA tournament began in 2002, with a Dirty Jersey team narrowly defeating a Maryland Power team in the semifinals of the 2002 KSA tournament. Scott Yun, the wingman for jersey, would forge a relationship during the next year with key Maryland member Boo Kim, and Bullets patron Dennis Kim, and would eventually link the two teams together, under the shared name Bullets. The squad included the best of both worlds with two legitimate big men and a bevy of talented guards and swingmen, though fears of chemistry and ego problems remained. The first game, versus eventual semifinalist Tech, quickly quelled all doubts, as the Bullets jumped out to a huge early lead courtesy of a suffocating 1-2-2 zone. Fast break lay-ups, blocked shots, and three pointers off crisp perimeter ball movement answered all chemistry questions as the result was never in doubt. The big men controlled the defensive paint and tech became noticeably fearful of the shot blocking potential of Seung Lee. The Bullets cruised to a 45-22 opening victory, and the team began to realize its vast potential. The next game, versus a team of Northern Virginia veterans, featured a slower pace, and the Bullets proved they could win playing a half court game. The team eventually wore down its opponent, the reserves were called in early, and the Bullets cruised to another easy win, 38-27. Joe Kim dismantled the adversary, penetrating at will, and the top of the zone forced numerous turnovers, as the big men continued to control the paint. The first two victories earned the bullets a bye in the first round and the team took the opportunity to lunch and relax at the abode of David Son. The first playoff game was versus a predominantly Southeast Asian team of UVa students, a team named Rod. After the lunch break, the Bullets came out focused and quickly disrupted the Rod offense with stifling defense and jumped out to a 15-0 lead. Steve and Seung Lee controlled the offensive boards and Rod's spirit was quickly broken. The reserves were called in very early, and extended the lead, as rookie Brian Edwards scored at will and the bullets had yet another victory, this time by a 30 point margin. Previous to the semifinal the tournament coordinators announced a mercy rule, which could be called the Bullets Rule, stating that if a team leads by 20 or more point with two minutes left, the game would be called. The semifinal pitted the Bullets against Dynasty. The first eight minutes featured more of the same bullets impregnable defense, and the team rapidly built a 15-4 lead. Dynasty's will was not so easily broken, as they stayed within 15 to 18 points for much of the game, but the result was never in doubt. Eventually the lead was extended to 24, and the game was called at two minutes, thanks to the newly installed bullets rule. The final matched the Bullets with a small Northern Virginia team, MK, that barely scraped by their semifinal, a one point victory over round robin Bullets victim, Tech. MK tried to slow the pace of the final in an attempt to control the hitherto unstoppable Bullets fast break. The tempo was noticeably slower, but that did not prevent the Bullets from quickly building a 19-10 lead, thanks to timely three pointers by Scott Yun and DC Shin, as Steve Lee and Seung Lee secured every single rebound. the MK team was noticeably worn out from their tumultuous path to the finals, which lied in stark contrast to the bullets who were very fresh from their blowout victories and extraordinary depth. A 30 foot three by Brian Edwards ended the rout and enacted the bullets rule, and the UVa tournament title was secured with alarming ease. |