The Sendai 89ers belatedly rang in the new year with a confidence-boosting win on Saturday. At the same time, the Kyoto Hannaryz lost their first game since Nov. 6, falling 76-62 to the host 89ers.
As a result, Kyoto's 12-game winning streak ended.
Johnny Dukes led Sendai with 28 points and 8-for-12 shooting at the foul line, Dan Fitzgerald scored 15 and Kenichi Takahashi added 11 and made 3 of 6 3-point shots. Takehiko Shimura handed out seven assists and made three steals for the victors. Rashaad Singleton, a 213-cm big man, added nine points, 11 boards and six blocked shots in 40 minutes.