In professional team sports, these are among the chief characteristics of championship teams: confidence, swagger and a diversified cast of proven playmakers.
Season after season, the Ryukyu Golden Kings, Okinawa's ultra-successful basketball team, have delivered master class after master class in the aforementioned traits. And they've also maintained their level of excellence while other bj-league teams have risen and fallen.
Reigning champion Ryukyu showcased its youthful exuberance and penchant for late-game drama in the closing moments of Saturday's series opener against the Chiba Jets, getting a pair of clutch buckets from 22-year-old Morihisa Yamauchi to close out a pulse-rising 84-82 victory.