The Layup Drill

By Jason Cruz
NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY

Welcome to another edition of The Layup Drill. In this edition, we take a look at the
AAPI coach and player who helped in UCLA’s NCAA title win; also, the end of the World Baseball Classic (WBC) and the start of the Major League Baseball (MLB) season; the return of a Korean soccer star, Anthony Kim, who wins a tournament; and the end to a successful basketball season for Seattle University.

UCLA’s win fueled by AAPI talent

Two AAPIs played a big role in UCLA’s women’s basketball championship run.

UCLA won its first NCAA title with a 79–51 victory over South Carolina. Guard Charlisse Leger-Walker, who’s from New Zealand with Māori and Samoan heritage, put up 10 points, four rebounds, and two assists in the final—becoming the first Kiwi to win a women’s NCAA title.

Assistant coach Soh Matsuura also helped power the team’s success. He’s been with the program since 2018 and was promoted to assistant coach in 2023, earning praise for his sharp eye and attention to detail.

Seattle U season ends

The Seattle University men’s basketball season came to an end in the post-season National Invitational Tournament (NIT) with a loss to Auburn. The team made the NIT as a No. 4 seed, making it the first time since 1957 to be invited. They earned a first-round victory against St. Thomas in the Redhawk Center, 67-52. Junseok Yeo scored 12 points in 37 minutes for the Redhawks. Houran Dan came off of the bench with 2 points in limited minutes for Seattle University. Unfortunately, they fell to Auburn in the second round. Yeo scored 13 points and added 6 rebounds. Dan scored 5 points in the last game of the season. 

Despite losing in the NIT, the Redhawks had a successful season going 21-14 in its inaugural season in the West Coast Conference. 

Baseball is back

The MLB season began with the Seattle Mariners looking to repeat a successful 2025 season and hoping to make it one game further into the World Series. The Mariners return its solid core of contributors including Cal Raleigh, Julio Rodriguez, and Josh Naylor. The team added Rob Refsnyder to the roster this year. Refsnyder, who is Korean, was adopted as an infant when he was just 5 years old. Born Kim Jung-tae, he was adopted by a couple from Southern California. Refsnyder took his adopted parents name and became a three sport athlete (football, basketball, and baseball) while growing up. He received a scholarship to play college baseball at the University of Arizona. He was drafted by the New York Yankees in the fifth round in 2012.  Since being drafted, the 35-year-old has played for seven MLB teams, including the Mariners. 

The Cleveland Guardians were the first opponent of the Mariners this season. Saturday, March 28 saw Bryan Woo make his first start of the season against the Guardians. The first batter he faced was Steven Kwan. The matchup was one of the few times that an Asian American pitcher faced an Asian American batter. Kwan, a gold glove left-fielder, moved to center field this year. Woo pitched an excellent game, allowing two runs on four hits and striking out nine in six innings. Kwan had two hits in the game after Woo was relieved. Unfortunately for the Mariners, they lost the game to the Guardians in extra innings.

The WBC came to a conclusion last month with Venezuela coming out as the underdog victor of the tournament. Japan seemed like the team to beat as it returned Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers. Also on the team this year were his Dodger teammates Roki Sasaki and Yoshi Yamamoto. Japan fell short in the semifinals after losing to Venezuela, which then went on to stun the United States and capture its first ever WBC title.

Son brings $ to SoCal

MLS Los Angeles Football Club (LAFC) striker Son Hueng-min is entering his first full year in the U.S. and the team is marketing his popularity to the many South Korean fans in Southern California. LAFC announced a partnership with Hello Soju to produce a cultural classic South Korean drink. This is the latest of several partnerships with South Korea tied with the soccer star. LAFC has sponsorship deals with several Korean companies, including bakery-cafe Paris Baguette, muscle recovery product ArniPatch, travel marketer Seoul Tourism, travel app Myrealtrip, fintech company WireBarley, and the rights to use the Line Friends characters. 

Son made his name in professional soccer in Europe where he played for Tottenham Hotspur of the Premier League. Among his accolades over 10 years with Tottenham, Son was awarded the captaincy in 2023. In 2025, Son signed with LAFC for a deal reported to be worth $26.5 million. The deal was an MLS record at the time of signing. Despite the huge contract for Son, his presence at LAFC games has brought a huge boom of business to the team in a region that has one of the largest populations of Koreans living outside of their home country.

Redemption for Anthony Kim

Sixteen years in between professional golf tournament victories, Anthony Kim finally broke through last month with a win on the LIV tour in Adelaide, Australia. Kim was a golf phenom coming out of college in 2006. He was successful on the PGA Tour and was a key part of the U.S. team during the Ryder Cup in 2008. But injuries, as well as drug and alcohol abuse, set him back in his career. He stated that he had contemplated suicide while on the PGA Tour. 

Kim stopped playing golf in 2014 due to injuries and ongoing physical therapy.. In 2019, he stated that he no longer was playing golf. He returned to the sport in 2021 seeking to revitalize his career. 

Kim has been sober since 2023 and has re-emerged on the LIV Tour.

At LIV Adelaide in March 2026, Kim had a marvelous final round, shooting 9-under 63 to overcome a 5 shot deficit for his first golf tournament victory since 2010. 

Jason can be reached at newstips@nwasianweekly.com.