B3 League Round 53: Chiba beat Okayama by three after a very close game

The Regular Season in B3 League is almost over. Almost everything is clear. There are only 3 rounds left. Here is the last round review presented by Job Market.

Sixth-ranked Okayama (26-13) used its home court advantage to challenge second ranked Chiba (33-6) on Sunday. The visitors from Chiba managed to secure only three-point victory 84-81. However their fans expected much easier game. 24 personal fouls committed by Okayama helped opponents get some easy free throw opportunities. American players dominated the game. Power forward Evan Ravenel (204-1989, college: Ohio St.) orchestrated the victory by scoring 33 points (!!!) and 6 rebounds. Forward Kevin Kotzur (203-1989, college: St.Mary's, TX) contributed with 15 points and 15 rebounds for the winners. Forward Chris Olivier (202-1992, college: OK State, agency: Octagon Europe) answered with 30 points and 9 rebounds (on 13-of-15 shooting from the field) for Okayama. Both coaches used bench players in such tough game. Newly promoted Chiba maintains second place with 33-6 record having twelve points less than leader Nagasaki. Okayama at the other side dropped to the seventh position with 13 games lost. Chiba are looking forward to face Shizuoka (#4) at home in the next round. Okayama will play against Toyoda in Aichi and is hoping to prove to their supporters that this time they can win.
Important game to mention about took place in Saitama. Seventh ranked Iwate (27-18) saved a 3-point victory on the road edging 8th ranked Saitama (23-17) 83-80 on Sunday evening. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of Saitama. American players dominated also this game. Kyle Richardson (200-1991, college: Portland St.) stepped up with a double-double by scoring 22 points and 19 rebounds for the winners and Terrance King chipped in 30 points and 8 rebounds. Power forward Ryan Watkins (206-1991, college: Boise St., agency: Slash Sports) responded with 18 points and 8 rebounds. Saitama's coach rotated ten players in this game, but that didn't help. Iwate moved-up to sixth place. Saitama at the other side keeps the eighth position with 17 games lost. Iwate will play against league's leader Nagasaki at home in the next round and it will be quite challenging to get another victory. Saitama will have a break next round.
B3 League top team - Nagasaki (40-4) had no problems winning another game on Sunday. This time they crushed fifth ranked Aisin AW (29-17) 87-66. Americans were the main players on the court. Matt Bonds nailed 26 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists for the winning side. Nigel Spikes came up with a double-double by scoring 16 points and 19 rebounds for Aisin AW in the defeat. The winner was already known earlier in the game, so both coaches allowed to play the bench players saving starting five for next games. Nagasaki have a solid series of three victories in a row. Newly promoted Nagasaki maintains first place with 40-4 record. Loser Aisin AW keeps the fifth position with 17 games lost. Nagasaki will meet Iwate (#6) on the road in the next round which should be theoretically another easy game. Aisin AW will play against Kagoshima in Renova and it may be a tough game between close rivals.

There were no big surprises in other games of round 53: Shinagawa was beaten by Gifu on the road 68-67. Yamaguchi was destroyed by Kagoshima on its own court 71-93. Yokohama EX unfortunately lost to Shizuoka in a road game 70-81.
The most impressive performance of 53th round was 19 points and 15 rebounds by Muusa Dama of Shizuoka.

Saitama - Iwate 80-83

Important game to mention about took place in Saitama. Seventh ranked Iwate (27-18) saved a 3-point victory on the road edging 8th ranked Saitama (23-17) 83-80 on Sunday evening. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of Saitama. Iwate players were unselfish on offense dishing 22 assists. American players dominated also this game. Kyle Richardson (200-1991, college: Portland St.) stepped up with a double-double by scoring 22 points and 19 rebounds for the winners and forward Terrance King (198-1990, college: ESU) chipped in 30 points and 8 rebounds. Power forward Ryan Watkins (206-1991, college: Boise St., agency: Slash Sports) responded with 18 points and 8 rebounds and center Will Creekmore (205-1989, college: Missouri St.) produced a double-double by scoring 12 points and 11 rebounds. Four Saitama players scored in double figures. Saitama's coach rotated ten players in this game, but that didn't help. Iwate moved-up to sixth place. Saitama at the other side keeps the eighth position with 17 games lost. Iwate will play against league's leader Nagasaki at home in the next round and it will be quite challenging to get another victory. Saitama will have a break next round.
Top scorers:
Iwate: T.King 30+8reb, K.Richardson 22+19reb+3ast, A.Osawa 9+2reb+3ast, Y.Toshiki 7+4reb+5ast, R.Ito 6+1reb+1ast, K.Takabatake 6+2reb+6ast
Saitama: N.Ren 18+1reb+2ast, R.Watkins 18+8reb+3ast, W.Creekmore 12+11reb+2ast, K.Nakano 10+1reb, B.Voelkel 9+6reb+7ast, S.Fumiya 7+2ast

Gifu - Shinagawa 68-67

No shocking result in a game when tenth ranked Gifu (19-27) edged at home 14th ranked Shinagawa (6-40) 68-67 on Sunday. However just one-point win is not that big difference and the fans of host team counted on more convincing victory. American center Jayce Johnson (213-1997, college: Marquette) nailed a double-double by scoring 15 points and 20 rebounds for the winning side and his fellow American import forward Alex Floresca (203-1996, college: San Diego) accounted for 11 points, 13 rebounds and 5 assists. Four Gifu players scored in double figures. Forward Abu Philip (198-1997) came up with a double-double by scoring 18 points, 14 rebounds and 5 assists and American center CJ Gettys (213-1994, college: Rutgers, agency: Haylett Sports) added 17 points, 12 rebounds and 5 assists respectively for Shinagawa in the defeat. Shinagawa's coach tried various players' combinations and tested in total twelve players, but that didn't help to avoid defeat in this game. Gifu maintains tenth place with 19-27 record. Newly promoted Shinagawa keeps the fourteenth position with 40 games lost. Gifu will have a break next round, and it should allow them to practice more before next game. Shinagawa will play against Yamaguchi (#12) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Gifu: K.Morito 16+1reb+1ast, J.Johnson 15+20reb+1ast, J.Wright 14+4reb, A.Floresca 11+13reb+5ast, S.Norio 8+2reb+3ast, Y.Yosuke 2+5reb+1ast
Shinagawa: P.Abu 18+14reb+5ast, C.Gettys 17+12reb+5ast, O.Kunitatsu 14+7reb+2ast, Y.Masuda 8, S.Taira 6+1reb+2ast, S.Sekiguchi 2

Okayama - Chiba 81-84

Sixth-ranked Okayama (26-13) used its home court advantage to challenge second ranked Chiba (33-6) on Sunday. The visitors from Chiba managed to secure only three-point victory 84-81. However their fans expected much easier game. 24 personal fouls committed by Okayama helped opponents get some easy free throw opportunities. American players dominated the game. Power forward Evan Ravenel (204-1989, college: Ohio St.) orchestrated the victory by scoring 33 points (!!!) and 6 rebounds. Forward Kevin Kotzur (203-1989, college: St.Mary's, TX) contributed with a double-double by scoring 15 points and 15 rebounds for the winners. Forward Chris Olivier (202-1992, college: OK State, agency: Octagon Europe) answered with 30 points and 9 rebounds (on 13-of-15 shooting from the field) and forward Jeffrey Parmer (203-1985, college: FAU) added 9 points and 10 rebounds in the effort for Okayama. Both coaches used bench players in such tough game. Newly promoted Chiba maintains second place with 33-6 record having twelve points less than leader Nagasaki. Okayama at the other side dropped to the seventh position with 13 games lost. Chiba are looking forward to face Shizuoka (#4) at home in the next round. Okayama will play against Toyoda in Aichi and is hoping to prove to their supporters that this time they can win.
Top scorers:
Chiba: E.Ravenel 33+6reb+1ast, K.Kotzur 15+15reb+3ast, F.Kota 11+4reb+2ast, K.Sugimoto 8+7ast, Y.Okada 6+1reb, Y.Otsuka 6+3ast
Okayama: C.Olivier 30+9reb+3ast, T.Kawamitsu 13+1reb, M.Yusuke 11+1reb+1ast, J.Parmer 9+10reb+3ast, M.Higuchi 7+1ast, C.Maduabum 4+4reb

Nagasaki - Aisin AW 87-66

B3 League top team - Nagasaki (40-4) had no problems winning another game on Sunday. This time they crushed fifth ranked Aisin AW (29-17) 87-66. Nagasaki made 17-of-22 free shots (77.3 percent) during the game. Nagasaki had a 31-18 advantage in offensive rebounds. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 25 assists comparing to just 12 passes made by Aisin AW's players. Americans were the main players on the court. Forward Matt Bonds (196-1995, college: St.Michael's, agency: Duran International) nailed 26 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists for the winning side and forward Jeffrey Gibbs (188-1980, college: Otterbein) accounted for 11 points and 14 rebounds. Center Nigel Spikes (208-1989, college: Marshall) came up with a double-double by scoring 16 points and 19 rebounds and forward Jordan Faison (201-1994, college: CPP) added 21 points and 4 assists respectively for Aisin AW in the defeat. The winner was already known earlier in the game, so both coaches allowed to play the bench players saving starting five for next games. Nagasaki have a solid series of three victories in a row. Newly promoted Nagasaki maintains first place with 40-4 record. Loser Aisin AW keeps the fifth position with 17 games lost. Nagasaki will meet Iwate (#6) on the road in the next round which should be theoretically another easy game. Aisin AW will play against Kagoshima in Renova and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Nagasaki: M.Bonds 26+8reb+4ast, K.Matsumoto 11+4reb+6ast, J.Gibbs 11+14reb+2ast, K.Ryota 9+1reb, T.Kanji 9+1reb, J.Carter 8+7reb+1ast
Aisin AW: J.Faison 21+3reb+4ast, N.Spikes 16+19reb+1ast, M.Dove 11+4reb, Y.Ishihara 6+4reb+6ast, K.Kenshin 5+2reb, F.Shunsuke 4+1reb+1ast

Yamaguchi - Kagoshima 71-93

Very expected game when 12th ranked Yamaguchi (11-37) was smashed at home by third ranked Kagoshima (33-10) 93-71 on Sunday. Kagoshima dominated down low during the game scoring 64 of its points in the paint compared to Yamaguchi's 38. They looked well-organized offensively handing out 22 assists. American swingman Anthony Gaines Jr (195-1993, college: LCU) nailed 34 points (!!!), 8 rebounds, 8 assists and 6 steals for the winning side and forward Ryo Kubota (195-1989) accounted for 13 points and 6 rebounds (on 6-of-7 shooting from the field). American forward Robert Sampson (203-1992, college: Georgia Tech) came up with a double-double by scoring 13 points and 18 rebounds and point guard Atomu Yamada (179-1998) added 22 points respectively for Yamaguchi in the defeat. Since the result was very predictable, it gave the chance for the coaches to test many bench players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. Kagoshima maintains third place with 33-10 record having eight points less than leader Nagasaki. Yamaguchi lost seventeenth consecutive game. Newly promoted team keeps the twelfth position with 37 games lost. Kagoshima will meet at home Aisin AW (#5) in the next round. Yamaguchi will play against Shinagawa (#14) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Kagoshima: A.Gaines Jr. 34+8reb+8ast, R.Kubota 13+6reb+1ast, K.Takahashi 11+2reb+3ast, H.Fujita 9+4reb+5ast, C.Diop 9+10reb, H.Aruma 6+4reb+3ast
Yamaguchi: A.Yamada 22+2reb+2ast, R.Sampson 13+18reb, Y.Ide 7+4reb+5ast, M.Keisuke 6+3reb, T.Issei 6+2reb, H.Doi 5+7reb+4ast

Shizuoka - Yokohama EX 81-70

Very predictable result when fourth ranked Shizuoka (32-9) won against at home 11th ranked Yokohama EX (14-30) 81-70 on Sunday. Beninese power forward Muusa Dama (207-1996, college: EIU, agency: Blacktop Management) nailed a double-double by scoring 19 points and 15 rebounds for the winning side and American center Ryan Stephan (208-1994, college: CMU) accounted for 15 points and 10 rebounds. Canadian forward Mamadou Gueye (201-1993, college: Alberta) came up with a double-double by scoring 12 points and 12 rebounds and point guard Hayate Arakawa (182-1997) added 15 points respectively for Yokohama EX in the defeat. Five Shizuoka and four Yokohama EX players scored in double figures. Both coaches tested many bench players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. Shizuoka have an impressive series of fourteen victories in a row. They maintain fourth place with 32-9 record. Loser Yokohama EX keeps the eleventh position with 30 games lost. Shizuoka will meet league's second-placed Chiba on the road in the next round and it will be quite challenging to get another victory. Yokohama EX will have a break next round.
Top scorers:
Shizuoka: M.Dama 19+15reb+1ast, Y.Kentaro 15+4reb+1ast, R.Stephan 15+10reb+3ast, Y.Okada 15+3reb+8ast, A.Elsener 11+3reb+2ast, F.Yohei 6
Yokohama EX: A.Hayate 15+4reb+2ast, I.Copeland 13+7reb, M.Gueye 12+12reb+3ast, E.Ross 10+4reb+1ast, O.Shota 5+3reb+1ast, S.Makoto 5+2reb+1ast



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