High-energy guard Masayuki Kabaya scored a season-high and game-best 28 points, canned 6 of 9 3-pointers and grabbed 10 rebounds in the Yokohama B-Corsairs' 82-75 victory over the Sendai 89ers on Thursday night in the bj-league.
Draelon Burns added 19 points, nine rebounds, five assists and four steals for the B-Corsairs (11-6) and Thomas Kennedy had 17 points. Pape Faye Mour added eight points and 10 rebounds and Minoru Kimura scored six points in a game held in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture.
Yokohama led 37-30 at halftime.
Takuya Komoda led the 89ers (5-11) with 17 points, T.J. Cummings scored 13 in his Sendai debut and Kevin Coble had 12. Takehiko Shimura scored 11 points and dished out nine assists and Sam Willard had 10 points.
The 89ers shot 25-for-43 from inside the 3-point arc, but made 5 of 21 from beyond.
Both teams had 44 rebounds.
Yokohama was 15-for-22 at the free-throw line; Sendai took 13 shots and made eight of them.
The B-Corsairs have won three straight games and five of their last six.
The series shifts to Ebina, Kanagawa Prefecture, for Friday's rematch. Tipoff is 7 p.m.