B3 League Round 5 (Regular Season): #1 Kagawa is defeated by Tokushima Gam.

B3 League Regular Season is still in too early stage and there may be still significant changes in the standings. Here is the last round review presented by Job Market.

The most crucial game of the last round was the first loss of undefeated Five Arrows (4-1) in Tokushima on Saturday night. Visitors were defeated by leader Gambarous (5-0) 81-74. It ended at the same time the four-game winning streak of Five Arrows. It was a key game for the second position in the league. Tokushima Gam. forced 19 Kagawa turnovers. Canadian center Chris McLaughlin (208-1992, college: Victoria) stepped up with a double-double by scoring 11 points, 11 rebounds and 4 assists for the winners and American-Filipino guard Roosevelt Adams (196-1998, college: Idaho Coll.) chipped in 15 points. American guard Tucker Haymond (195-1994, college: W.Michigan) responded with 21 points. Both coaches used bench players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. Undefeated Gambarous have an impressive series of five victories in a row. Tokushima Gam. moved-up to second place. Kagawa at the other side dropped to the fourth position with one game lost. They share it with Saitama. Tokushima Gam. are looking forward to face Kagawa (#4) in Takamatsu in the next round. Kagawa will have a break next round.
Albirex has registered their first victory this season after four consecutive losses. The win is especially important as it came on the road game in Yamaguchi, where they defeated Pats Five (1-4) 80-75. nailed 13 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists for the winning side and Eugene Phelps accounted for 14 points and 9 rebounds. point guard Takuma Enokida (184-1998, agency: Octagon Europe) came up with 14 points for Yamaguchi in the defeat. Both coaches tested many bench players in such tough game. Albirex left bottom position moving up to tenth place, which they share with Yamaguchi. Niigata A. will have a break next round, and it should allow them to practice more before next game. Yamaguchi will play at home against Niigata A. (#10) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
B3 League top team - Hachioji Trains (6-0) added another victory to their record on Friday. This time they beat seventh ranked United (3-3) in Kanagawa 70-62. The best player for the winners was Taren Sullivan who scored 16 points and 8 rebounds. Earnest Ross produced 20 points for the hosts. Both coaches allowed to play bench players saving starting five for next games. The victory was the fifth consecutive win for Hachioji Trains. Tokyo maintains first place with 6-0 record. Loser United dropped to the eighth position with three games lost. Both teams do not play next round, which will be an opportunity for some rest.

There were no shocking results in the rest of the games of round 5: Okayama won against Shinagawa on the opponent's court 90-80. Saitama managed to outperform Tokyo Utd in a home game 87-69. Okayama managed to beat Shinagawa on the road 94-82. Tachikawa defeated Gifu on its own court 92-81. Tokyo beat Shanan Utd in a road game 86-82. Winless Veertien Mie lost to Kanazawa at home 64-79.



Shinagawa - Okayama 80-90

Very expected game when bottom-ranked Shinagawa (0-6) was defeated at home by fourth ranked Try Hoop (5-1) 90-80 on Friday. Okayama dominated down low during the game scoring 60 of its points in the paint compared to Shinagawa's 26. Okayama looked well-organized offensively handing out 28 assists. The best player for the winners was American power forward Josh Scott (210-1993, college: Colorado, agency: Pensack Sports) who scored 19 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists (on 9-of-10 shooting from the field). His fellow American import forward Terrance King (198-1990, college: ESU, agency: Diamond Sports) chipped in 18 points. American guard Jaycee Hillsman (200-1996, college: Illinois St.) produced 25 points and 7 rebounds and Lithuanian Grantas Vasiliauskas (204-1999) added 13 points, 11 rebounds and 5 assists respectively for the hosts. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Both coaches allowed to play bench players saving starting five for next games. Okayama moved-up to third place. Shinagawa lost their sixth game in a row. They still close the standings with six games lost. Both teams do not play next round, which will be an opportunity for some rest.
Top scorers:
Shinagawa: J.Hillsman 25+7reb+3ast, R.Tawatari 17+1reb+5ast, G.Vasiliauskas 13+11reb+5ast, H.Seiya 10+1reb+1ast, O.Tomoya 7+6reb+3ast, M.Kellenberger 3
Okayama: J.Scott 19+9reb+7ast, T.King 18+3reb+1ast, K.Hankerson 13+3reb+3ast, C.Sow 12+3reb+1ast, T.Keisuke 9+4reb+2ast, F.Mamadou 6+1reb+1ast

Shanan Utd - Tokyo HT 62-70

B3 League top team - Hachioji Trains (6-0) added another victory to their record on Friday. This time they beat seventh ranked United (3-3) in Kanagawa 70-62. The best player for the winners was American forward Taren Sullivan (198-1995, college: Findlay, OH) who scored 16 points and 8 rebounds. Dutch-New Zealand Jonathan Janssen (205-1995, college: HPU) chipped in 11 points. Four Hachioji Trains players scored in double figures. Guamanian-American guard Earnest Ross (198-1991, college: Missouri, agency: Haylett Sports) produced 20 points and point guard Takaya Iju (179-1993) added 8 points and 8 assists respectively for the hosts. Both coaches allowed to play bench players saving starting five for next games. The victory was the fifth consecutive win for Hachioji Trains. Tokyo maintains first place with 6-0 record. Loser United dropped to the eighth position with three games lost. Both teams do not play next round, which will be an opportunity for some rest.
Top scorers:
Shanan Utd: E.Ross 20+4reb, I.Tomohiro 15+2reb+2ast, T.Iju 8+3reb+8ast, J.Polakovich 6+10reb+1ast, H.Reiji 5+2ast, H.Hee Hyeon 4+4reb
Tokyo HT: T.Sullivan 16+8reb+1ast, J.Janssen 11+4reb, D.Clay 11+3reb+1ast, T.Keitaro 10+3reb+1ast, Y.Fuki 7+2reb+3ast, O.Hiroya 6+2reb+4ast

Saitama - Tokyo Utd 87-69

Very predictable result in Saitama where sixth ranked Broncos (4-1) defeated bottom-ranked United (0-3) 87-69 on Saturday. Saitama made 26-of-29 free shots (89.7 percent) during the game. They also forced 20 Tokyo Utd turnovers. The best player for the winners was American Devin Oliver (203-1992, college: Dayton) who had a double-double by scoring 18 points, 13 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 steals. His fellow American import forward TJ Nesmith (206-2001, college: Radford) chipped in 17 points (perfect from the field making all six shots). Four Broncos players scored in double figures. Australian forward Rhys Vague (206-1996) produced a double-double by scoring 23 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists and American center Hayden Koval (216-1997, college: Cincinnati, agency: Diamond Sports) added 16 points and 7 rebounds (on 7-of-8 shooting from the field) respectively for the guests. Both coaches allowed to play bench players saving starting five for next games. Saitama moved-up to fourth place, which they share with Kagawa. Tokyo Utd lost their third game in a row. They still close the standings with three games lost. They share the position with Veertien Mie. Saitama will meet at home Tokyo Utd (#12) in the next round and are hoping to win another game. Tokyo Utd will have a break next round.
Top scorers:
Tokyo Utd: R.Vague 23+10reb+5ast, H.Koval 16+7reb+1ast, H.Hiroki 7+3reb+2ast, T.Shinnosuke 7+3reb+3ast, K.Stockman Jr. 4+2reb+2ast, T.Dan 4+2reb+1ast
Saitama: D.Oliver 18+13reb+5ast, T.Nesmith 17+4reb+2ast, M.Keijuro 13+1reb+1ast, M.Yuta 12+5reb+2ast, A.Tajima 9+2reb+3ast, R.Kondo 6+3reb

Shinagawa - Okayama 82-94

Not a big story in a game when bottom-ranked Shinagawa (0-6) was defeated at home by fourth ranked Try Hoop (5-1) 94-82 on Saturday. Okayama looked well-organized offensively handing out 28 assists. Great defensive blocking was one of the keys in this match when Okayama made 7 blocks. The best player for the winners was who scored 22 points (on 7-of-9 shooting from the field). American power forward Josh Scott (210-1993, college: Colorado, agency: Pensack Sports) chipped in 8 points and 15 rebounds. Lithuanian Grantas Vasiliauskas (204-1999) produced a double-double by scoring 15 points and 15 rebounds and American guard Jaycee Hillsman (200-1996, college: Illinois St.) added 16 points and 11 rebounds respectively for the hosts. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Both coaches allowed to play bench players saving starting five for next games. Okayama moved-up to third place. Shinagawa lost their sixth game in a row. They still close the standings with six games lost. Both teams do not play next round, which will be an opportunity for some rest.
Top scorers:
Shinagawa: J.Hillsman 16+11reb+3ast, G.Vasiliauskas 15+15reb+2ast, O.Tomoya 13+5reb+2ast, R.Tawatari 13+1reb+8ast, H.Seiya 8+2ast, Y.Hibiki 7+1reb+2ast
Okayama: F.Mamadou 22+3reb, T.King 18+5reb, K.Hankerson 13+4reb+6ast, T.Keisuke 11+5reb+6ast, Y.Toshiki 8+1reb+10ast, J.Scott 8+15reb+2ast

Tachikawa - Gifu 92-81

There was a small surprise in Tachikawa where eighth ranked Dice (3-2) beat 5th ranked Swoops (3-2) 92-81 on Saturday. Tachikawa dominated down low during the game scoring 48 of its points in the paint compared to Swoops's 28 and made 20-of-25 free shots (80.0 percent) during the game. Strangely Gifu outrebounded Tachikawa 43-30 including 30 on the defensive glass. The best player for the winners was American power forward Andrew Fitzgerald (202-1990, college: Oklahoma, agency: Octagon Europe) who scored 25 points and 6 rebounds. His fellow American import swingman LJ Peak (196-1996, college: Georgetown) chipped in 21 points and 7 rebounds. Four Dice players scored in double figures. American forward Blake Preston (206-2000, college: Northwestern) produced a double-double by scoring 16 points, 24 rebounds and 4 blocks and point guard Reo Yamazaki (179-1999) added 21 points (was perfect 8-for-8 from the free throw line) respectively for the guests. Both coaches allowed to play bench players saving starting five for next games. Tachikawa moved-up to sixth place, which they share with Gifu. Tachikawa will meet at home Gifu (#7) in the next round. Gifu will have a break next round.
Top scorers:
Gifu: R.Yamazaki 21+1reb+3ast, B.Preston 16+24reb, S.Andre 14+4reb, D.Fotu 8+6reb, A.Ryoya 6+5reb+4ast, U.Kenshin 6+3reb+1ast
Tachikawa: A.Fitzgerald 25+6reb+3ast, L.Peak 21+7reb+3ast, M.Ousu 12+3reb+3ast, M.Jota 11+2reb+6ast, M.Yuto 7+3reb+1ast, S.Fumiya 6+1reb

Shanan Utd - Tokyo HT 82-86

There was no surprise in Kanagawa where 7th ranked United (3-3) was defeated by leader Hachioji Trains (6-0) 86-82 on Saturday. The best player for the winners was American forward Taren Sullivan (198-1995, college: Findlay, OH) who scored 11 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists. chipped in 14 points and 5 rebounds (perfect from the field making all six shots). American center Jacob Polakovich (208-2000, college: S.Indiana) produced 15 points, 9 rebounds and 5 assists and his fellow the other American import import swingman LJ Peak (196-1996, college: Georgetown) added 17 points respectively for the hosts. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Both coaches allowed to play bench players in such tough game. The victory was the fifth consecutive win for Hachioji Trains. Tokyo maintains first place with 6-0 record. Loser United dropped to the eighth position with three games lost. Both teams do not play next round, which will be an opportunity for some rest.
Top scorers:
Shanan Utd: T.Shinya 17+4reb+1ast, J.Polakovich 15+9reb+5ast, N.Kodai 14+1ast, T.Iju 10+4ast, S.Shuki 10+1reb+1ast, C.Cunningham 8+8reb+1ast
Tokyo HT: K.Steve 14+5reb, O.Hiroya 13+3reb+3ast, Y.Fuki 13+1reb+1ast, T.Sullivan 11+5reb+4ast, D.Clay 9+2reb+3ast, I.Shuto 8+1reb+1ast

Veertien Mie - Kanazawa 64-79

No shocking result in a game in Yokkaichi where tenth ranked Samuraiz (2-3) won against bottom-ranked Veertien Mie (0-3) 79-64 on Saturday. The best player for the winners was American forward KJ Allen (198-2000, college: Portland St.) who scored 15 points and 7 rebounds. chipped in 12 points and 5 assists. German center Yasin Kolo (208-1992, college: Bellarmine) produced a double-double by scoring 14 points and 16 rebounds and Latvian Matiss Kulackovskis (203-1997, college: BGSU) added 13 points and 8 rebounds respectively for the hosts. Both coaches allowed to play bench players saving starting five for next games. Kanazawa moved-up to ninth place. Veertien Mie lost their third game in a row. They still close the standings with three games lost. They share the position with Tokyo Utd. Kanazawa will have a break next round, and it should allow them to practice more before next game. Veertien Mie will play against Kanazawa (#9) and hopes to get finally their first victory.
Top scorers:
Veertien Mie: Y.Kolo 14+16reb+1ast, M.Kulackovskis 13+8reb+3ast, W.Shogo 12+2reb+1ast, D.Dodd 7+6reb+1ast, A.Fuga 7+1reb+2ast, M.Yasuyuki 5+3ast
Kanazawa: K.Allen 15+7reb+3ast, H.Harris 12+3reb+3ast, O.Takayuki 12+3reb+5ast, T.Issei 9, J.Cordilia 8+6reb, I.Ayumu 6+1reb

Yamaguchi - Niigata A. 75-80

Albirex has registered their first victory this season after four consecutive losses. The win is especially important as it came on the road game in Yamaguchi, where they defeated Pats Five (1-4) 80-75. Niigata A. players were unselfish on offense dishing 23 assists. nailed 13 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists for the winning side and American-Filipino forward Eugene Phelps (198-1990, college: LBSU) accounted for 14 points and 9 rebounds. point guard Takuma Enokida (184-1998, agency: Octagon Europe) came up with 14 points and American-Filipino guard Roosevelt Adams (196-1998, college: Idaho Coll.) added 7 points and 8 rebounds respectively for Yamaguchi in the defeat. Both coaches tested many bench players in such tough game. Albirex left bottom position moving up to tenth place, which they share with Yamaguchi. Niigata A. will have a break next round, and it should allow them to practice more before next game. Yamaguchi will play at home against Niigata A. (#10) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Yamaguchi: T.Enokida 14+4reb+1ast, H.Bostyn 10+4reb+2ast, K.Shuto 8+1reb, T.Yuki 7+1ast, Y.Rikiya 7+1reb+2ast, B.Even 7+8reb+3ast
Niigata A.: E.Phelps 14+9reb+1ast, P.Isaiah 13+8reb+5ast, J.Mutombo 13+8reb, H.Aruma 9+1reb+2ast, N.Mitsuki 7+2reb+5ast, H.Tomonobu 6+1ast

Tokushima Gam. - Kagawa FA 81-74

The most crucial game of the last round was the first loss of undefeated Five Arrows (4-1) in Tokushima on Saturday night. Visitors were defeated by leader Gambarous (5-0) 81-74. It ended at the same time the four-game winning streak of Five Arrows. It was a key game for the second position in the league. Tokushima Gam. forced 19 Kagawa turnovers. Canadian center Chris McLaughlin (208-1992, college: Victoria) stepped up with a double-double by scoring 11 points, 11 rebounds and 4 assists for the winners and American-Filipino guard Roosevelt Adams (196-1998, college: Idaho Coll.) chipped in 15 points. Four Gambarous players scored in double figures. American guard Tucker Haymond (195-1994, college: W.Michigan) responded with 21 points and the other American import forward Alex Davis (206-1992, college: Fresno St., agency: Diamond Sports) scored 16 points. Both coaches used bench players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. Gambarous have an impressive series of five victories in a row. Tokushima Gam. moved-up to second place. Kagawa at the other side dropped to the fourth position with one game lost. They share it with Saitama. Tokushima Gam. are looking forward to face Kagawa (#4) in Takamatsu in the next round. Kagawa will have a break next round.
Top scorers:
Kagawa FA: T.Haymond 21+3reb+2ast, A.Davis 16+3reb+1ast, K.Patrick 10+7reb, I.Hajime 8+1reb+1ast, J.Lampkin 6+7reb+1ast, K.Takumi 4+2reb+1ast
Tokushima Gam.: R.Adams 15+3reb, T.Yutaka 12+3ast, C.McLaughlin 11+11reb+4ast, T.Dawson 11+4reb+2ast, N.Moriyama 8+1reb, A.Teruya 6