Defending champions Alvark win second straight to open season
The Alvark Tokyo improved to 2-0 on the new season with a hard-earned 94-84 victory over the visiting Niigata Albirex BB on Sunday afternoon. Trailing 42-41 at halftime, the Alvark excelled for key stretches of the second half and pulled ahead by as many 20 ...
Ryukyu set to defend The Terrific 12 title
Japan's 12-man FIBA World Cup squad, which includes 10 players who are employed by B. League teams, will measure its overall skills during the upcoming global tournament in China. Similarly, four B. League squads will be put to the test in The Terrific 12, a ...
Star center Davante Gardner joins SeaHorses
In a major move that could shake up the balance of power in the B. League's Central Division, the SeaHorses Mikawa announced the acquisition of star center Davante Gardner on Thursday. Gardner spent the past three seasons with the Niigata Albirex BB, helping the club ...
Sensational start propels Nagoya past Ryukyu in series opener
The Nagoya Diamond Dolphins overwhelmed the Ryukyu Golden Kings in the first quarter of Saturday's B. League Championship quarterfinal series opener. The Diamond Dolphins' 21-4 scoring spurt over the first 10 minutes paved the way for a 69-53 victory in Okinawa City. And now the pressure's ...
Niigata hopes to take momentum into playoffs
Niigata Albirex BB coach Kazuhiro Shoji has been in an enviable position throughout the season. Since the Albirex opener in October, Shoji hasn't had a legitimate reason to make wholesale changes to his starting lineup. Instead, the names of veteran guards Kei Igarashi and Shinsuke Kashiwagi, ...
Revitalized Albirex revel in newfound success
Ace scorer Davante Gardner secured the ball that was shot by Kawasaki's Ryusei Shinoyama, ran out of the paint area and threw it high — really high — into the air just before the buzzer sounded. That was the dramatic moment when the Niigata Albirex ...
Yuki Togashi nails clutch jumper in closing seconds to propel Jets past rival Alvark
Yuki Togashi didn't have his best shooting game on Saturday. It wasn't even close to his best game. But he kept shooting, never losing faith in his shot. The Jets star's confidence in his skills helped his team triumph in a down-to-the-wire game against the reigning champion ...
Elite teams set pace as title chase heats up
There's an old adage cited by managers and coaches that comes to mind as the B. League regular season winds down. "You want to be playing your best ball at the end of the season," they say. Well, with five games remaining before the eight-team playoffs ...
Sunrockers cruise past Albirex
Frontcourt mates Robert Sacre and Ryan Kelly combined for 52 points as the Sunrockers Shibuya outplayed the visiting Niigata Albirex BB in Friday's B. League series opener. In the Sunrockers' 92-77 victory, Sacre put 27 points on the board, making 10 of 17 shots from ...
Niigata edges Fukuoka in overtime
The Niigata Albirex BB are tough to beat at home. Saturday's series opener against the Rizing Zephyr Fukuoka was a reminder of that fact. Davante Gardner, the B. League's leading scorer, and veteran teammates Lamont Hamilton and Kei Igarashi set the tone for Niigata in an ...
Niigata outplays Mikawa in series opener
Niigata Albirex BB star Davante Gardner received an abundance of Christmas presents from the SeaHorses Mikawa on Saturday afternoon. The B. League's leading scorer was repeatedly sent to the free-throw line, and the Marquette University product drained 12 of 13 attempts in an 86-77 road ...
Albirex soar past Happinets in series opener
The Niigata Albirex BB employed a three-guard lineup in Thursday's series opener against the Akita Northern Happinets. Veterans Kei Igarashi and Shinsuke Kashiwagi started alongside combo guard Ryonosuke Watanabe, and the trio scored a combined 28 points in Niigata's 84-74 victory. Igarashi, who played on Japan's ...
