Kobe Paras and Chiba made sure not to disappoint their home fans who trooped to the Oamishirasato Arena on Sunday as the Altiri exacted payback on Yamagata, 87-73, to close out another week in the 2022-23 B.League Division II season.
There would be no repeat of Saturday’s outcome when the Altiri saw their five-game winning streak snapped by the Wyverns.
Mentored by former Australian national team coach Andrej Lemanis, Chiba used a pivotal third quarter run to build a 69-56 advantage which Yamagata could not summon the firepower to overhaul.
Chiba erected their biggest lead of 18 points in the fourth quarter which took the fight out of Yamagata.
The Wyverns controlled the battle of the boards as they outrebounded the Altiri, 36-26.
Chiba, however, suffocated Yamagata on the defensive end. The home team had 13 steals and forced Yamagata to commit 22 turnovers.
Chiba’s balanced offense resulted in eight players scoring at least six points, with all four imports putting up double figures.
Brandon Ashley poured in 18 points, while Leo Lyons had 16 and Evan Ravenel had 11.
Kobe Paras again impressed with 10 points, including two triples, plus two rebounds, two assists, and two steals.
Yamagata was paced by James Bell’s 17 points. Thomas Welsh, who terrorized Chiba on Saturday with seven blocked shots, again had three blocks to go with his 13 points and 13 boards.
Chiba upped its record to eight wins and three losses, tying it with Jordan Heading’s Nagasaki Velca at third place in the team standings.
