Kobe Paras put on a show in his Niigata debut.
Unfortunately, though, it was not enough. Niigata suffered a close 81-85 loss at the hands of Kyoto to open its 2021-22 B.League campaign, Saturday afternoon at City Hall Plaza Aore.
Paras had 25 points on 8-of-15 shooting from the field and four triples with four assists and two steals.
In his first official game since the Manama window of the 2021 FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers, the 6-foot-6 swingman out of University of the Philippines started the game on fire. He scored 11 of the first 15 Albirex points.
Paras continued his surge in the second quarter, racking up nine more points in a 31-point Niigata stand. That helped the home side gain a 50-41 halftime lead.
Hannaryz though stormed right back in the third canto that set up a thrilling final stanza.
With the game knotted at 79-all, former TNT import David Simon scored on a jumper and was followed by a big triple by Kazuki Hozokawa.
Rosco Allen split his charities afterward to cut the lead down to three with 1:19 left.
Then with 15 ticks left, Paras gave Niigata a chance to tie the game after completing a steal against Justin Harper. Yuto Nomi though could not knockdown a wide-open triple that led to a split on the stripe for Harper and the game.
Simon powered Hannaryz with 28 points, seven rebounds, four assists, two steals, and a couple of blocks. Harper had 21 points and five rebounds.
Allen supported Paras with 19 points, 15 rebounds, and three assists. Meanwhile, Jeff Ayres saw himself limited to just nine points and six rebounds.
The two squads face off again tomorrow at 2:05 PM (Manila time).
