February 19, 2017

The 6th round wrapped earlier this week and the 7th and final round is underway. Woori Bank and Samsung have already punched their tickets for the postseason while the other four teams are in a heated race to clinch the final spot. For winning the regular season, Woori Bank automatically advances to the finals while the other two teams will play a best of three semi-final series.

On Wednesday Woori Bank visited Samsung in Yongin. Samsung was back to having only one foreigner available as Alyssa Thomas had to play all 40 minutes of the game. Down by 16 at the half, many thought the game was over. However, Samsung rallied back in the third and eventually tied the game up in the fourth quarter! Despite the best efforts of Thomas who finished with a double double, Woori Bank, who saw both foreigner players foul out the game, prevailed and won 85-72.

On Thursday an important game between KB Stars and KEB Hana went to KB 63-70 as they continue to rise in the standings after sitting at the bottom for most of the season.

Woori Bank were on the road again on Friday but this time they were up against Shinhan Bank who are in desperate need of a win. Shinhan had to play with only one foreigner as they just brought in a replacement for Alexis Vaioletama who left the team for personal reasons. Shinhan is one of two teams that have beaten the defending champions this season and were hoping to take them down again on their home floor. Shinhan played a close game throughout and were tied with Woori to start the fourth quarter. Woori turned up the heat and outscored Shinhan 26 to 6 to finish the game winning by 20 58-78.

Another heavy load for Alyssa Thomas and Samsung as Thomas had to play another 40 minute game. Samsung took a three point lead into the half and slowly pulled away in the second. Winning 87-73 assuring whichever team they face in the semi-finals that they will be tough to beat.

Sunday’s game was a thriller between KB Stars and KEB Hana. A close game throughout, it came down to the last minute to decide its winner. The road team Hana Bank had the lead down the stretch but KB hit two big threes to pull within one point in the last minute of the game. A turnover on their next possession led to an easy layup by KB which gave them a one point lead and eventually the game 60-59. KB’s rookie sensation Park Ji-Soo was just one rebound shy of a triple double. She finished the game with 13 points, 9 rebounds and  11 assists! With this win KB sits in third place in the standings.

 

Woori Bank vs. Samsung 85-72 WOO Currie 13 pts 8 rebs Jones 6 pts 10 rebs SAM Thomas 28 pts 16 rebs 5 ast

KEB Hana vs. KB Stars 63-70 KEB Achonwa 16pts 11 rebs Thornton 10 pts 5 rebs KB Pierson 16 pts 4 rebs Braxton 11 pts 5 rebs

Shinhan Bank vs. Woori 58-78 Bank SHI Williams 19 pts 12 rebs WOO Currie 24 pts 5 rebs Jones 13 pts 15 rebs

Winnus KDB vs. Samsung 73-87 KDB Christmas 18 pts 8 rebs Hawkins 4 pts 3 rebs SAM Thomas 29 pts 12 rebs

KB Stars vs. KEB Hana 60-59 KB Pierson 6 pts 8 rebs Braxton 9 pts 6 rebs KEB Thornton 19 pts 10 rebs 4 ast Achonwa 4 pts 5 rebs

 Standings;

1. Woori Bank 28-2
2. Samsung 17-14
3. KB Stars 13-18
4. Winnus KDB 12-19
5. Shinhan Bank 11-19
6. KEB Hana 11-20

 

February 15, 2017 

With most teams having just six games remaining in the regular season things couldn’t be any more interesting in the Korean League. First placed Woori Bank already clinched the regular season and a spot in the finals while Samsung will also compete in the playoffs but the seedings can change. Only three teams make it to the playoffs with the first placed team automatically playing in the finals. KEB Hana, KB Stars and Shinhan Bank all have the same 11-18 record! KDB is currently in third place with a record of 12-18.

For the 7th and final round of the league every game will be more than important for everyone. After clinching first place, Woori Bank changed their line-up to give other players a chance to play but moving forward they are likely to get back to their original lineup in preparation for the finals.  Although Samsung will definitely be playing in the playoffs they must continue to win if they want to have home court advantage. The other four teams will fight in out for the last available playoff spot. Shinhan Bank will have to incorporate another new foreigner as Alexis Vaioletama decided to leave the team for personal reasons. KB Stars have dug their way out of the bottom of the standings after their rookie sensation Park Ji-soo gained more confidence and is playing incredible for the team. They now have a chance to make their way back to the playoffs where they lost last season in the semi-finals to KEB Hana. KDB has missed the playoffs for the past four seasons. They have a chance to ease a lot of disappointment they’ve experienced the last several seasons. KEB has had an up and down season to say the least. After losing every game in the first round of play, they changed course and won all but one game in the second round. Since then, there hasn’t been very much consistency. Either way, there will be some great games coming soon. Be sure to check back and find out who will make their way to the playoffs! 

Standings;

1. Woori Bank 26-2
2. Samsung 16-13
3. Winnus KDB 12-18
4. KEB Hana 11-18
5. KB Stars 11-18
6. Shinhan Bank 11-18

 

As teams continue to battle for playoff spots Woori Bank clinched the regular season with their win on Friday. For the sixth consecutive season, Woori will play in the WKBL finals. After this week of the games the standings remained the same. On Monday, Shinhan Bank defeated KEB Hana bank 70-49. On Wednesday, Samsung continued their winning ways convincingly defeating Winnus KDB 87-58. Karima Christmas was limited to only one minute as she sprained her ankle at the start of the game. KB Stars added another win to their record defeating sliding KEB Hana 71-61 behind point guard Seong Young who finished with a season high 24 points. Woori Bank had a regular season title on the line when they faced Samsung at home Friday. After a close first half, Woori pulled away in the second half winning 86-67 behind another 20 and 20 game from Jonquel Jones.

January 23, 2017

Shinhan Bank vs. KEB Hana 70-49 SHI Williams (30 min) 13 pts 16 rebs 3 ast Vaioletama (9 min) 2 pts 2 reb  KEB Thornton (14 min) 6 pts 6 rebs Achonwa (25 min) 8 pts 8 rebs

January 25, 2017

Samsung vs. Winnus KDB 87-58 SAM Thomas (11 min) 16 pts 1 reb Howard (27 min) 14 pts 10 reb KDB Hawkins (37 min) 25 pts 12 reb Christmas DNP 

January 26, 2017

KB Stars vs. KEB Hana 71-61 KB Pierson (28 min) 11 pts 14 rebs  Braxton (11 min) 6 pts 1 reb KEB Thornton (26 min) 14 pts 10 reb  Achonwa (13 min) 3 pts 2 reb

January 27, 2017

Woori Bank vs. Samsung 86-67 WOO Currie (14 min) 9 pts 5 reb Jones (25 min) 21 pts 20 reb SAM Thomas (25 min) 14 pts 10 reb Howard (14 min) 10 pts 6 reb 3 ast

Standings;

1. Woori Bank 24-1
2. Samsung 13-12
3. Shinhan Bank 11-14
4. KEB Hana 10-15
5. Winnus KDB 9-16
6. KB Stars 8-17

January 16, 2017 

There has been a slight shake up in the standings in the Korean League as Samsung Blue Minx have taken over the #2 spot. With the season a little more than halfway done, team’s records are still very close to one another. Second placed Samsung only has five more wins than last placed KB Stars, and three more wins that 5th placed Shinhan Bank. Just one game separates the second and third placed team and two games separate second and fourth. With that, outside of first placed Woori Bank, all teams have a chance to move into play-off contention during the second part of the season. The top three teams make the play-offs with the first placed team receiving a bye all the way to the finals. Here’s how teams have done since the New Year began;

 

Woori Bank; Woori Bank has continued their winning ways and are undefeated since the new year began. With a league best 21-1 record they are just four games away from clinching the regular season championship. Woori started the year with a blowout win against last placed KB Stars, winning 71-51. They then took down KEB Hana Bank 84-59. Playing the last game before the all-star break, Woori blew out Shinhan Bank 73-47. Woori Bank seems to get better as the season goes along. With the return of their starting point guard who has missed more than a month with the team, the only people who can get in the way of another WKBL championship is Woori Bank themselves.

Samsung; Since the start of 2017 Samsung are 3-0. They’ve defeated KDB 73-64, KEB 86-53, and KB Stars 66-62. Against KDB Samsung was lead by Alyssa Thomas who filled up the stat sheet with 21 points, 15 rebounds, 4 assists and 5 steals in the win. In a surprising blowout game against then second placed KEB Hana, Natasha Howard took the lead scoring 18 points and pulling down 16 rebounds! In what was an evenly matched game that could have gone either way, Samsung held on in the end to win their third game in a row. KB were able to hold both Howard and Thomas to much lower stats than usual which gave them a fighting chance. However, Samsung used their home court advantage to sneak by in the end and move into second place in the standings.

KEB Hana; KEB Hana are 1-3 in 2017. They won their first game of the year against KB Stars but haven’t picked up another since; losing to Samsung, Woori Bank and Winnus KDB. They won 58-48 against KB with a balanced effort on offense and a big stance on defense where KB took 27 three pointers but only made 3. There wasn’t much fight in KEB Hana when they faced Samsung on the road losing 86-53. Thornton did all she could on the boards with 16 but Samsung had four players score in double figures to Hana’s two. Hana Bank got blown out again against first placed Woori Bank losing 59-84 at home. Woori Bank had five players score in double figures which Hana again only had two players score in double figures. Their last loss came at the hands of fourth placed KDB. Losing a closer game at home 80-83. A close game throughout, Thornton and Christmas went to battle for their teams. In the end Christmas got more help from her teammates to pull out the win and are now only one game out of playoff contention.

Winnus KDB; KDB has moved up in the standings and are now just one game out of the playoffs heading into the all-star break. Going 2-2 since the new year KDB is back to playing more confidence. This first loss came at the hands of Samsung 64-73. Christmas had 17 and 9 but didn’t get much help from the rest of her teammates. They got back on track against Shinhan winning 67-63 at home. After being up by 13 to enter the fourth, Shinhan Bank were close to making a comeback winning the quarter 21-12. However, it was a little too late as KDB hung on for the win. This time around they weren’t so lucky against Shinhan as they lost 62-71 on the road. Despite the best efforts of Christmas who finished with 20 points and 8 rebounds, they just couldn’t overcome the balanced attack from Shinhan. Their last game before the break needed overtime to decide its winner. KDB came out on top against KEB 83-80 and are now just one game behind KEB for the final playoff spot.

Shinhan Bank; Shinhan Bank has fallen behind again and sit in last place in the standings with a 8-14 record. Even still, they are only two games outside of a playoff spot. Shinhan Bank are 1-2 since the start of the new year. Their first loss came at the hands of Winnus KDB 67-63. Williams but up big numbers scoring 24 points in the loss. Shinhan then faced KDB yet again but this time the results were different. Shinhan won 62-71 as they used their home court to their advantage. Playing in the last game before the All-Star break Shinhan faced first placed Woori on the road. Shinhan must have already prepared for break as they didn’t put up a fight losing 73-47.

KB Stars;  0-3 since the New Year, KB has been stuck on 6 wins for quite some time. They are currently in last place in the standings and haven’t gotten much better since making a foreigner change to their roster. KB lost to KEB 48-58, to Woori 51-71 and to Samsung 66-62. Pierson has done as much as she can scoring in double figures in all three games but they continue to fall short. Their closest game against Samsung was a battle but Samsung’s balanced attack overwhelmed the visitors. Surprisingly, KB hasn’t been getting the usual production from the domestic players. Outside of Gang Aejeong, there hasn’t been a huge contribution from players that normally produce. KB is also going through a difficult time as one of their best players decided to quit the team last week. It is not known why she decided to leave the team but there is speculation that she was unhappy with her role on the team and the pressure put on by the coaching staff.  Although they are at the bottom of the standings they are still not out of making the playoffs if they go on a run. 

Standings;

1. Woori Bank 21-1
2. Samsung 11-10
3. KEB Hana 10-12
4. Winnus KDB 9-12
5. Shinhan Bank 8-14
6. KB Stars 6-15

To close out the year teams are still fighting for position in the standings. With teams being separated by just one and two games every game is important. Outside of Woori Bank, who are currently in first place with a 18-1 record, all other teams have a chance to move up with every game won. Second placed KEB Hana have hit a rough patch as they have lost their last two games. On Christmas Day KEB lost to KDB on the road. Karima Christmas was unstoppable as she led her team with 27 points in the win. KEB then faced first placed Woori Bank who took no chances and beat them by more than 20 points on their home floor. KB Stars have found their way back to the bottom of the standings after going 0-2 in their last two outings. First losing a close one to Samsung on the road where Natasha Howard had a season high 30 points as she led her team to a much needed victory. KB then found themselves matched up against KDB who were in last place before winning their last two games. Despite a big game from Pierson, they still came up short and thus switched places in the standings. Woori continued their winning ways as they dismantled Shinhan Bank in the last game of 2016.

December 31, 2016 Shinhan Bank vs. Woori Bank 57-75  SHI Williams (25 min) 11 pts 7 rebs Vaioletama (14 min) 6 pts 4 rebs WOO Currie (11 min) 8 pts 3 rebs Jones (28 min) 17 pts 19 rebs

December 30, 2016 Winnus KDB vs. KB Stars 70-66 KDB Christmas (35 min) 14 pts 14 rebs Hawkins (9 min) 3 pts 2 rebs KB Pierson (39 min) 20 pts 6 rebs Braxton (5 min) 3 rebs

December 29, 2016 Shinhan Bank vs. Samsung 67-70 SHI Williams (21 min) 13 pts 15 rebs Vaioletama (18 min) 1 pt 4 reb SAM Thomas (13 min) 4 pts 8 rebs Howard (26 min) 23 pts 6 rebs 3 asts

December 28, 2016 KEB Hana vs. Woori Bank 40-66 KEB Thornton (22 min) 7 pts 12 rebs Achonwa (17 min) 8 pts 4 rebs  WOO Currie (10 min) 8 pts 8 rebs Jones (29 min) 10 pts 18 rebs

December 26, 2016 Samsung vs. KB Stars 75-70 SAM Thomas (13 min) 9 pts 5 rebs Howard (26 min) 30 pts 8 rebs 6 stls KB Pierson (34 min) 25 pts 12 rebs 6 ast Braxton (5 min)

December 25, 2016 Winnus KDB vs. KEB Hana 91-83 KDB Christmas (25 min) 27 pts 4 rebs 4 ast Hawkins (14 min) 10 pts 2 rebs KEB Thornton (12 min) 9 pts 2 rebs Achonwa (27 min) 16 pts 6 rebs 3 ast

Standings; 

1. Woori Bank 18-1
2. KEB Hana 9-9
3. Samsung 9-10
4. Shinhan 7-12
5. Winnus KDB 7-12
6. KB Stars 6-12

The Fourth Round of the Korean League started on the 21st with first placed Woori Bank taking on KDB Winnus at home. Woori Bank took a 9 point lead into the half and held on throughout the second to secure their 15th win of the season. In a matchup between teams high in the standings KEB Hana looked to protect their home floor against a Shinhan team looking to take their place. In what was a competitive game, where the foreigners didn’t have a huge impact on the game scoring wise for either side, Hana once again prevailed and still hold onto the coveted second place in the standings. In what looked to be a blowout when Woori Bank took on Samsung on the road Friday night, ended up with a final score closer than what the tale of the game was. Alyssa Thomas returned to the lineup for Samsung after missing 10 games with a shoulder injury. Jonquel Jones of Woori Bank set a Korean League rebounding record in the first half after she pulled down 20 rebounds! Woori Bank went on to win the game by 9. The Christmas Eve matchup between KB Stars and Shinhan should have been much closer but KB didn’t waste time getting a big lead and holding on to finally add a win and move from the bottom of the standings. Pierson had a huge double double for the hosts.

December 24, 2016

KB Stars vs. Shinhan Bank 68-41 KB Pierson (26 min) 27 pts 12 rebs Braxton (14 min) 14 pts 6 rebs SHI Williams (27 min) 15 pts 13 rebs Viotamela (13 min) 2 pts 1 reb

December 23, 2016

Samsung vs. Woori Bank 50-59 SAM Howard (14 min) 7 pts 3 rebs Thomas (26 min) 8 pts 5 rebs WOO Jones (28 min) 8 pts 23 rebs Currie (12 min) 6 pts 3 rebs

December 22, 2016

KEB Hana vs. Shinhan Bank 67-59 KEB Thornton (18 min) 11 pts 3 rebs Achonwa (22 min) 8 pts 11 rebs SHI Williams (15 min) 5 pts 7 rebs Viotamela (24 min) 8 pts 5 rebs

December 21, 2016

Woori Bank vs. KDB Winnus 70-64 WOO Jones (15 min) 5 pts 2 rebs Currie (25 min) 17 pts 8 rebs KDB Christmas (23 min) o pts 3 rebs Hawkins (16 min) 8 pts 2 rebs

 

Standings; 

1. Woori Bank 16-1
2. KEB Hana 9-7
3. Shinhan Bank 7-10
4. KB Stars 6-10
5. Samsung 6-10
6. Winnus KDB 5-11

 

 

 

December 19, 2016

The last game of Round 3 was played between teams still battling for position in the standings. KEB Hana holds onto second place in the standings while KB have found themselves in a recent slump. KB started off slow but kept pace with Hana for much of the game. However it wasn’t enough to keep Hana Bank from winning another game on the road. KB drops down to tie for last place in the standings while Hana looks to make some distance between themselves and the rest of the teams.

KB Stars vs. KEB Hana 61-70 KB Pierson (27 min) 13 pts 6 rebs Braxton (8 min) 4 pts KEB Achonwa (22 min) 21 pts 8 rebs Thornton (17 min) 11 pts 10 rebs

 

December 18, 2016 

Playing in their last game of Round 3 Samsung hosted Shinhan bank Sunday afternoon. Samsung has struggled lately and their position in the standing continues to fall. On the other hand, Shinhan has turned things around and had another good showing on the road. A two point game at the half, both teams looked fought to stay in the game. Howard did all she could for the hosts, scoring 19 points and pulling down 13 rebounds but it wasn’t enough as Shinhan, led by Alexis Viotamela, who had a huge outing with a season high of 28 points to go along with 8 rebounds led her team to a huge victory and a spot up in the standings.

Samsung vs. Shinhan Bank 57-62 SAM Howard (40 min) 19 pts 13 rebs 4 blks  SHI Viotamela (40 min) 29 pts 8 rebs 4 ast 4 stls

December 17, 2016

After losing their first game of the season Woori Bank looked to get back on the winning side of things as they visited struggling KB Stars. Kara Braxton has been a great addition for the Stars but Jonquel Jones won the battle of this posts this game. The game got off to a slow start with both teams struggling to score points. After the first quarter the score was 4 to 8! Both teams picked it up in the second and Woori took a 12 point lead into the half. The second half was all Woori as they began to find their rhythm and slowly build the lead. There was no coming back for KB as they lost for the third time to Woori Bank this season.

KB Stars vs Woori Bank 41-59 KB Pierson (27 min) 16 pts 5 rebs  Braxton (12 min) 0 pts 2 rebs WOO Jones (29 min) 25 pts 14 rebs 3 blks Currie (10 min) 8 pts 4 rebs

December 16, 2016

As they try to work their way out of the bottom of the standings Winnus KDB hosted second placed KEB Hana Bank. It was a close first half as KDB took a three point lead into the half. The second half was just as close as Natalie Achonwa did just enough to give her team the slight edge and the win.

Winnus KDB vs. KEB Hana 64-67 KDB Christmas (16 min) 6 pts 7 rebs Hawkins (23 min) 18 pts 11 rebs KEB Achonwa (24 min) 19 pts 10 rebs Thornton (15 min) 6 pts 2 rebs

 

 

Standings;

1. Woori Bank 14-1
2. KEB Hana 8-7
3. Shinhan Bank 7-8
4. Samsung 6-9
5. KB Stars 5-10
6. Winnus KDB 5-10

December 15, 2016

Woori Bank suffered their first loss of the season Thursday night to a revamped Shinhan Bank. The addition of Destiny Williams to their roster has proven to have made the difference as they have moved themselves from last place in the standings to fourth. Shinhan held Woori Bank to just five points in the second quarter! After being down at the half for the first time this season Woori Bank fought back in the third and for a short time took the lead. Shinhan never gave up and made crucial baskets down the stretch including a three point shot that gave them the lead and eventual win with 8 seconds remaining in the game.

Woori Bank vs. Shinhan Bank 55-58 WOO Currie (16 min) 5 pts 4 rebs Jones (24 min) 12 pts 9 rebs SHI Williams (34 min) 21 pts 14 rebs  Viotamela (5 min) 4 pts 1 reb

December 14, 2016

KB Stars got back to their winning ways in their second game with their new roster. Kara Braxton replaced Bashaara Graves last week for the Stars. Samsung is still without Alyssa Thomas who is rehabbing a shoulder injury. She is expected to be back in the next week or two.  KB controlled the game from start to finish. With high expectations to start the season KB finds themselves out of playoff contention at the moment. With the standings changing daily, every game is important for each team as only one and two games separate all teams 2 through 6.

KB Stars vs. Samsung 68-45 KB Braxton (20 min) 17 pts 7 rebs Pierson (17 min) 13 pts 6 rebs SAM Howard (17 min) 4 pts 10 rebs McKinney 22 min) 7 pts 3 rebs

December 12, 2016

Since making a change in their roster Shinhan Bank has been playing very good basketball. Winning another game at home and moving their way up the standings. This game against KDB was close throughout but Shinhan used their experience to hold off the visitors in the second half. This season the Korean League has been very unpredictable as each team has beaten the other. Outside of first placed Woori Bank everyone has lost to the other teams. The standings change daily and is the reason why every game is extremely important to everyone.

Shinhan Bank vs. Winnus KDB 58-50 SHI Williams Viotamela KDB Christmas Hawkins 

December 11, 2016

After a slow start to the season Hana Bank has turned things completely around. Sitting in second place in the standings, after losing every game in the first round is very impressive. They have found their rhythm and are convincingly beating teams. Kayla Thornton has been a major piece for KEB Hana as she leads the Korean League in scoring. Samsung has hit a rough patch but still sit just behind Hana in the standings.

KEB Hana vs. Samsung 80-65 KEB Thornton (23 min) 23 pts 10 rebs 6 ast Achonwa (17 min) 11 pts 11 rebs SAM Howard (28 min) 15 pts 9 rebs McKinney (11 min) 6 pts 2 rebs

 

Standings;

1. Woori Bank 13-1
2. KEB Hana 6-7
3. Samsung 6-8
4. Shinhan Bank 6-8
5. KB Stars 5-8
6. Winnus KDB 5-9

December 8, 2016

Woori were in search of their 12th win in a row Thursday evening as they took on KEB Hana at home. In their first two meetings Hana has played Woori Bank better than any other team. They were hopeful that they would be the first team to hand Woori their first loss of the season. Woori Bank put an end to those feelings early on as they took a 12 point lead into the half. The second half was no different as Woori slowed pulled away from Hana and led by as many as 20 points late in the second half. Currie had a season high in points with 24 for the winners.

Woori Bank vs. KEB Hana Bank 84-65 WOO Currie (19 min) 24 pts 5 rebs Jones (20 min) 13 pts 10 rebs KEB Thornton (23 min) 24 pts 8 rebs Achonwa  (16 min) 9 pts 4 rebs

December 9, 2016

Kara Braxton made her debut for KB Stars against Shinhan Bank on Friday evening. Shinhan were in dire need of a win as they try to work their way out of the bottom on the standings. Braxton showed well for KB, leading all scorers with 28 points but no other player scored in double figures for the Stars. On the other hand, Shinhan used a balanced attack to defeat the Stars with four players scoring in double figures led by Destiny Williams who finished the game with a double double. Shihan and KB are now tied for last place in the standings.

Shinhan Bank vs KB Stars 81-65  SHI Williams (23 min) 12 pts 12 rebs  Violatmela (15 min) 9 pts 4 rebs  KB Braxton (22 min) 28 pts 3 rebs Pierson 17 min) 6 pts 4 rebs

December 10, 2016

Woori Bank only had one day of rest before getting on the road to take on KDB on their home court. With little rest, maybe thought Woori would be handed their first loss of the season. Again, Woori showed to be the most dominant team in the league as they wore down KDB as the game went on. Only up by 7 at the half, Woori used a balanced effort to keep the game out of reach for KDB. Woori Bank saw four players score in double figures, led by Park Hye-jin who finished the game leading all scorers with 18 points. Woori Bank improves to 13-0 on the season.

Winnus KDB vs. Woori Bank 57-72 KDB Christmas (24 min) 12 pts 5 rebs Hawkins (15 min) 8 pts 4 rebs WOO Currie (21 min) 11 pts 5 rebs Jones (18 min) 12 pts 12 rebs

Standings;

1. Woori Bank 13-0
2. Samsung 6-6
3. KEB Hana 5-7
4. Winnus KDB 5-8
5. KB Stars 4-8
6. Shinhan Bank 4-8