FUNABASHI, CHIBA PREF. –

Winning breeds confidence.

And the Chiba Jets' sky-high confidence is augmented by relentless defensive energy and a potent offense.

Those elements were on full display on Sunday in a well-rounded 90-65 victory over the struggling Toyama Grouses at Funabashi Arena. That performance gave the Jets, who debuted in 2011 in the now-disbanded bj-league, a franchise-record 13th straight win.

Jets forward Michael Parker acknowledged as much after a 15-point, 10-rebound, two-assist, two-steal performance that earned him game MVP honors.

"We keep getting better. We've been getting better since day one," said Parker, who shot 7-for-8 from the field.

Delighting in the positive vibes of the winning streak, Parker added that "we're going to keep trying to win."

Throughout his interview session with reporters Chiba head coach Atsushi Ono repeatedly praised his players' defensive effort after the Jets' latest win improved their record to 18-7.

That effort limited Toyama (3-22) to 36.2 percent shooting, including 3-for-20 from 3-point range. For bench boss Bob Nash's squad, the Grouses' passes and dribble-drive penetrations didn't produce the desired results, either; they had 15 turnovers and nine assists.

The Jets, on the other hand, capitalized on outside shooting opportunities. They made 13 of 34 3s, including rising star Kosuke Ishii's crowd-pleasing 7 of 11 in an exhilarating 26-point, four-assist performance before a packed house of 5,217.

Tyler Stone finished with 15 points, 12 rebounds, four assists and a pair of steals for Chiba, which led 21-17 after the opening quarter. Former NBA center Hilton Armstrong finished with 12 points and seven rebounds, while Yuki Togashi (six points, six assists), Yuki Ueta (six points) and Ryumo Ono (six points, three assists, one steal, one block) also made key contributions.

Naoki Uto was the Grouses' top scorer with 16 points. He exhibited a nice mix of moves in the half-court set, using the backboard to score multiple buckets and showcasing quickness as well to give himself space on spin moves that led to layups. Toyama's Drew Viney and Sam Willard scored 11 points apiece.

Ex-NBA center Dexter Pittman, a second-round pick by the Miami Heat in the 2010 NBA Draft, struggled in his second game in a Grouses uniform, with six points on 2-for-10 shooting. Pittman grabbed 10 rebounds and blocked a shot in 17-plus minutes before fouling out.

Coach Ono also stated that the team's bench contributions, which included 25 points, were key factors in the rout. Stone was the highest-scoring reserve and from start to finish attacked the rim on offense, as did Parker and Armstrong.

Toyama pulled within 32-31 on a Willard 3-pointer with 3:30 left in the half.

Chiba responded with a 9-0 spurt to close out the half, and the Grouses never recovered. The Jets extended their lead to 61-47 after three quarters and pulled away down the stretch.

Toyama star guard Masashi Joho, who had 29 points, 6-for-10 3-point shooting, and five assists in the Grouses' 91-87 series-opening loss on Saturday, was the focal point of Chiba's defense.

Coach Ono concocted a defense that bottled him up and limited his effectiveness, which also disrupted Toyama's offensive rhythm.

Joho is Toyama's catalyst and ignites his teammates.

In the rematch, he was held to eight points on 2-for-11 shooting, with two assists and three turnovers.

"We made adjustments on Joho," Ono said, citing his catch-and-shoot skills and ball-handling ability. He described the defense against Joho as zone trap with pressure.

"We stepped up on defense," he added, saying a physical presence on defense was a key across the board for his players.

In their dynamic transition offense, the Jets got the ball to Parker, Stone and Armstrong against a Grouses defense that looked tired and a step behind for large stretches of the game.

Chiba also made quality kick-out passes, especially to Ishii, who spotted up and let fly from beyond the arc with textbook mechanics and a pretty backspin spiral on the ball that sailed through the net with ease. Repeatedly, his shots were what hoop announcers proclaim "nothing but net." The Jets' enthusiastic public-address announcer raised his excitement level to an even higher decibel in the closing moments after Ishii's third 3-pointer in rapid succession, declaring, "Kosuke, unstoppable!" as the crowd chanted and clapped with delight.

After the game, Nash said, "Let's give credit to Chiba. They played extremely well today. They did a great job. They were focused from beginning to end. They made good decisions with the basketball — 23 assists. They got the ball to their shooters. Ishii had two big games against us, so they did an excellent job of sharing the basketball and playing together."

He went on: "We had our moments where we played well together, but they weren't sustained. We need to get a little more offensive punch from our scorers, but you have to give Chiba credit; they did a really good job of pressuring and not letting Joho get into any kind of rhythm. They double-teamed him coming off picks and took away his options to shoot."

Brave Thunders 101, Lakestars 70

In Otsu, Shiga Prefecture, title-chasing Kawasaki controlled the boards and raced out to a 34-12 lead after one quarter en route to its 14th straight victory.

The Brave Thunders (22-3) outrebounded Shiga 44-28.

Kawaski star Nick Fazekas had 27 points on 12-for-15 shooting and 13 rebounds and Ryan Spangler chipped in with 19 points and 10 boards.

The Brave Thunders had 26 assists on 34 field goals. Ryusei Shinoyama dished out a team-best eight assists.

David Weaver scored 21 points, Julian Mavunga had 17 and Narito Namizato 12 for the Lakestars (6-19).

Hannaryz 72, Brex 70

In Kyoto, the hosts dominated the fourth quarter and bounced back from a series-opening loss to Tochigi.

Kyoto (12-13) outscored the visitors 27-7 in the final period.

For the Hannaryz, Yusuke Okada had the hot hand from the perimeter, knocking down 7 of 11 3s in a 29-point outing. Teammate Lawrence Hill poured in 21 points and Marcus Dove added eight points and 17 rebounds.

Ryan Rossiter paced the Brex (18-5) with 16 points and 17 boards. Yutaro Suda added 12 points.

Diamond Dolphins 86, Sunrockers 73

In Nagoya, the Diamond Dolphins limited Shibuya to nine second-quarter points and wrapped up a weekend sweep.

Nagoya (15-10) shot 50 percent from both the 3-point arc (11 of 22) and 2-point range (18 of 36).

Takaya Sasayama had 22 points and Tenketsu Harimoto scored 18 for the hosts, while Justin Burrell contributed 12 points and 17 rebounds.

Ira Brown scored 14 points for the Sunrockers (12-13) and Kenta Hirose had 11.

Albirex BB 87, Northern Happinets 74

In Akita, big man Davante Gardner guided Niigata with 33 points, 11 rebounds and four assists and Clint Chapman contributed 14 points and four blocks as the visitors completed a weekend sweep.

Floor leader Kei Igarashi finished with 11 points and four assists for the Albirex (14-11).

Kevin Palmer scored 16 points for Akita (6-19), while Kenichi Takahashi and Deshawn Stephens provided 14 apiece. Stephens also hauled in 12 rebounds.

B-Corsairs 89, 89ers 71

In Yokohama, the B-Corsairs held Sendai to 31 second-half points and salvaged a series split.

Jason Washburn had 26 points and 13 rebounds for Yokohama (9-16) and Jeff Parmer chipped in with 19 points and nine rebounds. Takuya Kawamura added nine points and eight assists.

For the 89ers (7-18), Tshilidzi Nephawe was the high scorer with 18 points and corralled nine rebounds.

SeaHorses 87, NeoPhoenix 64

In Kariya, Aichi Prefecture, Mikawa canned 10 of 15 3-pointers and handed San-en its sixth straight defeat.

Makoto Hiejima paced the SeaHorses (19-6) with 22 points and Tomoya Hasegawa, who drained 5 of 6 3s, had a 20-point performance. Savvy veteran J.R. Sakuragi made an impact with 16 points and 10 assists.

Mikawa led 50-38 at halftime.

Robert Dozier had 17 points and 10 rebounds for the NeoPhoenix (12-13) and Olu Ashaolu scored 16 points.

Evessa 91, Golden Kings 81

In Osaka, Richard Roby energized the Evessa with 19 points and big man Josh Harrellson had a 17-point, nine-rebound effort as they beat Ryukyu for the second time in as many days.

Shun Watanuki and Naoaki Hashimoto each scored 13 points for Osaka (15-10).

Ryuichi Kishimoto led the Golden Kings (10-15) with 21 points and Reyshawn Terry scored 17.