The schedule for the EASL Champions Week has been announced. In a situation where there are 4 teams in each group, what is the reason for only 2 matches per team in the group stage?
KBL said in a press release on the 10th, “The East Asian Super League (EASL) Champions Week match schedule to be held in Utsunomiya and Okinawa, Japan from March 1 to 5, 2023 has been confirmed.”
Seoul SK and Anyang KGC, Ryukyu Golden Kings and Brex Utsunomiya (Japan), San Miguel Beerman and TNT Tropang Giga (Philippines), Bay Area Dragons (Hong Kong), Taipei Fubon The Braves (Taiwan) will participate. The winning prize is USD 250,000, and the runner-up and third-place teams are awarded USD 100,000 and USD 50,000, respectively.
KGC will have their first match against Taipei on March 1st at 5:00pm in Utsunomiya and their second qualifying match against San Miguel at 4:00pm on March 4th in Okinawa. SK will play the first match in the Bay Area and Utsunomiya on March 2 at 5:00 PM, and the second match on the 3rd at 5:00 PM TNT at the same location.
There is one question that arises here. In a situation where 4 teams are organized in 2 groups of A and B, only 2 matches are played per team in each group. In this way, there will be no head-to-head matches with 1 team in the same group. 안전놀이터
An EASL official said, “Due to their home league schedule, there was not much time for each team to participate in the tournament. Right before, the tournament could not be held because it was during the FIBA World Cup qualifying period. So, from March 1st to 5th, we decided to do it on a limited basis.”
“A number of plans came up, but as a result of discussions, the result came out that it would be best for each team to play only two games per group and the top two teams to advance to the finals. The 1st place in the group will face each other in the final, and the 2nd place will play the 3rd and 4th place matches. It was not a regular competition format, but it was a way to satisfy everyone under the given conditions.” Therefore, EASL determined the matchup through a lottery. The lottery video can be found on EASL’s official social media.
An EASL official said, “We held a lottery in mid-December. It was done in a situation where all clubs were watching. You can see the detailed video by going to our social media.”