The B. League third-division runner-up Koshigaya Alphas earned a promotion to the second flight with a crushing 86-64 win over the Hachioji Bee Trains in the B2/B3 promotion playoff game before a crowd of 2,057 at Yokohama Arena on Sunday.
Power forward Kyle Richardson led the team with 26 points and 20 rebounds, while fellow American Josh Peppers followed with 23 points and nine boards for the Alphas, who before this season were known as the Otsuka Shokai Koshigaya Alphas.
Koshigaya head coach Kazuto Aono said his team had gone through ups and downs over the course of the 2018-19 season and had not envisioned competing on the type of stage Sunday's game provided.