Tochigi Brex - Ryukyu GK 73-71

Tochigi Brex celebrated B1 title. They held off Ryukyu Golden Kings in the decisive third game of the championship series to conquer the trophy. The hosts trailed by 7 points after three quarters before their 29-20 charge, which allowed them to win the game. The best player for the winners was American guard DJ Newbill (193-1992, college: Penn State) who scored 19 points and 5 assists. The former international swingman Makoto Hiejima (191-1990) chipped in 17 points. At the other side the best for losing team was American forward Victor Law (201-1995, college: Northwestern, agency: Pensack Sports) who recorded a double-double by scoring 16 points and 13 rebounds and the other American import forward Keve Aluma (206-1998, college: Virginia Tech, agency: Pensack Sports) added 15 points respectively. Both coaches used bench players in such tough game.
Top scorers:
Tochigi Brex: D.Newbill 19+3reb+5ast, M.Hiejima 17+2reb+3ast, G.Jerrett 15+5reb, I.Fotu 7+5reb+1ast, G.Edwards 7+9reb+2ast, S.Ikaruga 3+1reb+1ast
Ryukyu GK: V.Law 16+13reb+1ast, K.Aluma 15+4reb, Y.Matsuwaki 12+3reb, M.Waki 8+4reb+5ast, A.Kirk 7+5reb+2ast, S.Onodera 6+1reb

The 100th All Japan Basketball Championship, aka the Emperor's Cup, staged its title match on March 15 at Yoyogi National Stadium in Tokyo. The Ryukyu Golden Kings defeated B.League rival Alvark Tokyo 60-49 to claim their first Emperor's Cup crown. Alex Kirk (211-C-1991, college: N.Mexico, agency: Pensack Sports) paced the Golden Kings with 15 points and grabbed 10 rebounds and frontcourt mate Jack Cooley (206-C/F-1991, college: Notre Dame, agency: Pensack Sports) had 10 points and 15 boards. Keve Aluma (206-F-1998, college: Virginia Tech, agency: Pensack Sports) chipped in with nine points and floor leader Ryuichi Kishimoto (176-G-1990) finished with nine. Ryukyu led 31-24 at halftime. Shuto Ando (190-G-1994) had a team-high 12 points for the Alvark. Sebastian Saiz (205-PF-1994, college: Ole Miss) added 11 points. The Golden Kings were the tournament runners-up in 2023 and 2024, falling to the Chiba Jets both times in the final. Longtime Ryukyu assistant coach Keith Richardson was thrilled with the outcome of the March 15 match. "After getting our third shot at it we finally won the Japan Emperor's Cup championship! Richardson wrote on his Facebook page. "As they say 'Third time's the charm!' " He added, "The team fought a very tough game and prevailed at the end. [It was] the 100th anniversary of this tournament! This was for the people of Okinawa!" The Emperor's Cup was first staged in 1922. It was not held in 1942, 1944, '45 or '46 due to the war, but it was contested in 1943.
Courtesy of: japan-forward.com

By the end of the fast-paced first quarter, B.Black and B.White had attempted 28 shots from beyond the 3-point arc. This became the centerpiece of the 2025 B.League All-Star Game. The two teams combined for 211 shots from the floor, 113 of which were 3-point attempts. B.White, led by the tone-setting performances of former NBA player Yuta Watanabe (206-F-1994, college: GWU), his Chiba Jets teammate Yuki Togashi (170-PG-1993) and others, built a 62-48 lead by halftime and held on for a 119-114 victory on Sunday, January 19. Fan favorite Togashi earned MVP honors with a 15–point performance, knocking down 5 of 11 3-point shots. At LaLa arena TOKYO-BAY in Funabashi, Chiba Prefecture, an announced crowd of 9,636 saw a contest that was a near carbon copy of the 2024 B.League All-Star Game. In the previous January's midseason showcase, B.White beat B.Black 128-123, and the two All-Star squads launched a combined 119 3-point attempts at Okinawa Arena. After being selected as All-Star Game MVP, Togashi spoke about the enjoyment of All-Star weekend from his perspective. "I have been playing for Chiba Jets for a long time (since 2015), and I enjoyed the two days of [events], including being selected by many votes, playing as a starter, and winning the MVP award," Togashi said. He added, "I enjoyed the events, the guests and all the people who came to make the event a great success. … I am very happy that we were able to hold a very successful All-Star event in Funabashi city." Showmanship was on display from start to finish, with razzle-dazzle passes and slam dunks. Indeed, there was also an overemphasis on long-range shots. The opening tipoff was contested by 188-cm Jeff Gibbs (188-F-1980, college: Otterbein) (Koshigaya Alphas) for B.White and 204-cm Koya Kawamata (204-F-1998) (Nagasaki Velca) for B.Black, who nabbed the opening possession. Seconds later, Kawamata converted a layup for the game's first points. Velca teammate Yudai Baba (196-SF-1995) was credited with the assist. Watanabe banked in a 3-pointer for B.White's first bucket, pulling his team to within 4-3 in the early going. Back and forth, the teams traded baskets, with open looks and exaggerated mannerisms by the shooters adding to the visual spectacle and the entertainment. B.White took a 31-26 lead into the second quarter after Watanabe (seven points) and Ryukyu Golden Kings big man Jack Cooley (206-C/F-1991, college: Notre Dame, agency: Pensack Sports) (six) scored nearly half of the team's points in the opening period. Kawamata led all scorers with eight points on 4-for-4 shooting in the first quarter. Also for B.Black, Kawasaki Brave Thunders playmaker Ryusei Shinoyama (178-PG-1988) and Utsunomiya Brex floor leader DJ Newbill had six points apiece in the 10-minute period. B.Black chipped away at the lead in the second half, but B.White still led 92-80 entering the final quarter. And that proved to be a big enough cushion to hold off their opponent's comeback attempt. SeaHorses Mikawa All-Star Yutaroh Suda (190-G-1992) paced B.White with 21 points on 8-for-11 shooting, followed by Watanabe's 16-point effort supplemented by three assists, two steals and two blocks. Cooley finished with 16 points and a game-high 21 rebounds. San-en NeoPhoenix small forward Hirotaka Yoshii added 14 points. For B.Black, Alvark Tokyo big man Sebastian Saiz (205-PF-1994, college: Ole Miss) had a team-best 19 points, Newbill poured in 18, Kawamata had 15 and Dwayne Evans (201-F-1992, college: St.Louis, agency: Pensack Sports) (Hiroshima Dragonflies) added 14. Gunma Crane Thunders Al-Star Naoto Tsuji (185-G/F-1989) chipped in with 11 points, all of which he scored in the fourth quarter. Utsunomiya's Yusuke Endo (186-G-1989) scored nine points, while Josh Hawkinson (208-F-1995, college: WSU) (Sunrockers Shibuya) added seven points, nine rebounds and seven assists.
Courtesy of: japan-forward.com

All-Star MVP: Jack Cooley (206-C/F-1991) of Ryukyu GK

Head Coach: Shogo Asayama of Hiroshima D.

Japanese B League All-Star Game WHITE TEAM 2025

Watanabe

Togashi

Ando

Gibbs

Bonds

White Team
Yuta Watanabe (206-F-1994) of Chiba Jets 16pts
Yuki Togashi (170-PG-1993) of Chiba Jets 15pts
Seiya Ando (181-G-1992) of Shimane SM 6pts
Jeff Gibbs (188-F-1980) of Koshigaya A. 7pts
Matt Bonds (196-F-1995) of Osaka E. 4pts
Ryusei Shinoyama (178-PG-1988) of Kawasaki BT 4pts
Jae-Min Yang (201-SF-1999) of Sendai 89ers 3pts
Hirotaka Yoshii (196-F/G-1998) of San-en NP 14pts
Yutaroh Suda (190-G-1992) of Sea Horses M. 21pts
Ryuichi Kishimoto (176-G-1990) of Ryukyu GK 3pts
Naoki Tashiro (188-F-1993) of Chiba Jets 6pts
Shuta Hara (187-SG-1993) of Chiba Jets 4pts
Jack Cooley (206-C/F-1991) of Ryukyu GK 16pts MVP

Head Coach: Trevor Gleeson of Chiba Jets

Head Coach: Junya Masumoto of Alvark Tokyo

Head Coach: Tomohide Utsumi of Kyoto H.

Slam Dunk Contest
Anthony Gaines Jr. (195-G/F-1993) of Kagoshima Winner
Koh Flippin (188-G-1996) of Gunma CT
Troy Murphy Jr. (195-G-2002) of Sunrockers Sh.